‘Lot more to come’: Sky pundit tells Arteta not to ignore Arsenal 20-year-old’s ‘big talent’

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Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith has heaped praise on Gabriel Martinelli and believes there’s a lot more to come from the young attacker.

The Brazilian burst onto the scene under Unai Emery in 2019 and became an instant fan-favourite. Everybody could see his quality and potential, but injuries have been really cruel on him.

Martinelli, 20, hasn’t started a lot of games since Mikel Arteta’s arrival, much to the anger of Arsenal supporters. However, he is in the side now and scored a really good goal against West Ham United earlier this week.

Smith, who knows a thing or two about scoring goals, has predicted a big future for Martinelli. He has urged Arsenal to not ignore or discard the ‘big talent’ that he possesses.

Alan Smith: There’s a lot more to come from Martinelli at Arsenal

He told Sky Sports: “There’s a lot more to come from Martinelli, without question.

“He’s had a difficult spell over the last year or 18 months or so. He had his injury, of course, and maybe his confidence has taken a hit, but he has come back into the fold and playing somebody like that out on the left is a way of bringing them back into the team.

“There’s not quite so much responsibility in terms of leading the line and being the main goal threat.

“Maybe in time he will become a central striker, we’ll have to wait and see on that one, but you think back to when he burst onto the scene, he was a revelation. I remember the game at Stamford Bridge where he ran half the length of the pitch and scored with a calm finish.

“There’s a big talent in there for sure, and that shouldn’t be ignored or discarded. I’m sure it won’t be.”

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Arsenal fans absolutely love Martinelli. The youngster adds a different energy to the game every time he steps on the pitch, but opportunities have been hard to come by for him.

However, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang out for the foreseeable future, Martinelli could get a good run of games. He scored a fantastic goal this week and he’s getting into some really good positions.

He will only get better as he plays more games and if Arteta manages him properly, he could become one of the best players in the Premier League in the coming years.

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