Arsenal fans frustrated that Gabriel Martinelli is not starting against Villarreal

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Arsenal play Villarreal tonight in the away leg of their Europa League semi-final – and some of the club’s fans on Twitter have reacted extremely negatively to the absence of Gabriel Martinelli from the starting XI.

Despite poor domestic form this campaign, the Gunners are two matches away from reaching the Europa League final.

Mikel Arteta’s side play in Spain tonight against La Liga club Villarreal, and would surely love some away goals to take back to the Emirates Stadium for next week’s second leg.

The north London club have already eliminated Slavia Prague, Olympiacos and Benfica in the knockout rounds to get to this stage of the competition.

Arsenal have announced their starting line-up ahead of Thursday night’s 8pm kick-off:

A selection of Arsenal supporters on social media are frustrated that Martinelli has been named on the bench against Villarreal.

The 19-year-old forward has had to be patient waiting for his opportunity since returning from a long-term injury layout back in December, with Gunners manager Arteta reluctant to start him frequently.

The £90,000-a-week (Spotrac) Brazilian attacker can play as a left-winger or striker and started two of the previous league matches, showing glimpses of the quality that makes him a real favourite. However, he’s had to make do with a spot on the bench tonight with Arteta preferring to play Nicolas Pepe in a false nine position.

Here are some Arsenal fans reacting instantly to the team confirmation:

https://twitter.com/_YudN/status/1387826533025423371

https://twitter.com/DannyRobson89/status/1387826414808965121

https://twitter.com/6ixSideArsenal/status/1387826153742872577

https://twitter.com/JamrockRover/status/1387826002559180811