BEVERLY HILLS, December 23, (THEWILL) – North London English Premier League side Arsenal have endured one of their worst ever starts to a season campaign and there has been precious little to excite fans of the outfit who ended last season and began this one with the FA Cup and Community Shield, respectively.
All that appears to be part of a long and forgotten history now. Currently, the results have been bad, the football even worse and almost every player in Mikel Arteta’s squad has been drastically underperforming just as a series of red cards have not only made the results discouraging but displayed some dip in discipline in the ranks.
On Tuesday night, a rampant Manchester City extinguished any remaining embers of hope Arsenal supporters had that the drudgery was subsiding. The grind set in early as Gabriel Jesus put City 1-0 up after only two minutes in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final fixture.
At this level of competition, that opener was a horrific one to concede but it was very much in keeping with the woeful Gunners season. A defensive misunderstanding between keeper Runar Alex Runarsson, and defenders Gabriel Magalhaes and Shkodran Mustafi allowed City attacker Gabriel Jesus a completely free header.
The Brazilian made no mistake in punishing the error, heading left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko’s cross into the back of the net. It immediately felt like business as usual for Arteta’s side after going behind. For 10 solid minutes after, the Gunners were lacklustre and unimaginative going forward.
However, the lone source of light in this all too familiar dirge, came in the form of the returning youngster G. The Brazilian provided the much-needed injection of hope and invention.
His breakthrough last term was one of the high points of the Gunners’ season. Before a knee injury sidelined his continued involvement, he had racked up 14 direct goal involvements in 26 games including a viral moment when he ran the length of the pitch, beat a retreating N’Golo Kante of Chelsea to score the winner for Arsenal.
Although his fine statistical output was impressive overall, what whetted the appetite for fans most was his entire approach. Martinelli, still only 19, played without fear and it was obvious as the distinctive feature of his game. Despite his lengthy absence from competitive football, he showed the greatest deal of this bravery against City.
Everything promising in the Gunners’ first-half fightback, Martinelli spearheaded as he pressed with more intensity than any Arsenal forward so far this season. Even though he was not perfect by any means, as he lost possession four times in the opening 45 minutes, at least he was trying something.
Arsenal sorely needed exactly that and there had been no one providing it until now. Someone who has not had to live through their nightmarish start to the season. Someone who isn’t afraid of taking risks and getting at the opposition. Someone motivated to prove something.
The highlight of the teenager’s eye-catching display was providing the assist for Alexandre Lacazette’s equaliser on the half-hour mark. The lead up to the cross typified everything he brought to the game. Though his first touch was heavy, he did not give up. Instead, the speedster raced down to the byline and produced a sumptuous, looping cross which Lacazette headed home powerfully in another dominant display.
As if cursed this season, Arsenal fans are seemingly not allowed to have nice things for any length of time. Soon after setting up their equaliser, Martinelli suffered a strong challenge from stand-in City goalie Zack Steffen who caught the Arsenal player’s toe as he slid in to sweep up a through ball.
Although allowed to continue at the break, he had to be subbed off for Nicolas Pepe when he started hobbling after just a few second-half minutes. Manager Arteta will hope that Martinelli’s absence is brief.
A player of his bravery and talent is exactly what Arsenal needs to lift them out of the doldrums. And it will provide some hope and cold comfort for Arsenal fans that there is hope tomorrow in the darkest periods they have endured.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
