Jermaine Jenas has been speaking on the latest edition of Match of the Day 2 about Sunday’s Premier League games, and one of the matches that he talked about was Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Newcastle United.
The standout player for Jenas was Gabriel Martinelli, who provided an assist for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s goal and was a constant livewire throughout the match, earning a 7.83 rating from WhoScored.
The Brazilian, who is valued at £19.8 million (as per Transfermarkt), clearly impressed Jenas, who was pleased with the 19-year-old’s performance.
He said: (39:32) “[Martinelli] was absolutely brilliant.
“You know what it was about him today [Sunday], it was the way that he held his width from minute one.
“He was relentless in doing so all day [taking on Jacob Murphy].
“When you know you’ve got someone who’s just hugging that byline, it’s just your out ball.
“He was always the main threat.
“This [was] just precise [Martinelli’s cross for Aubameyang’s goal], picks out his man, who he’s been searching for all game, and he was their best player today.”
Do you think Martinelli should start against Villarreal?
Yes, he deserves to play
No, leave him on the bench
TIF Thoughts on Martinelli…
The Brazilian has had a torrid time with injuries, but he has now played a part in the last six league games and seems to be gaining some match fitness, which can only be a good thing. His cross for Aubameyang was so inviting, and he was a threat all afternoon.
Given that the Gunners have a huge match on Thursday against Villarreal in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final, this was the ideal performance from Martinelli to give himself the chance to be involved in that game.
We hope that Mikel Arteta does give him a prominent role in a huge match for the Gunners.
In other news: ‘Really struggling’ – Charles Watts left disappointed by ‘poor’ £27m-rated Arsenal man