Arsenal star duo warned as Gabriel Martinelli sets target for teammate | Football | Sport
Arsenal clinched another victory in the Champions League’s league phase on Wednesday, signalling their intent to the rest of Europe’s elite. The Gunners started strongly against Greek champions Olympiacos, with Viktor Gyokeres bulldozing through the defence and hitting the post, only for Gabriel Martinelli to score the tap-in.
Last season’s semi-finalists could have had plenty more goals on the night but were wasteful, while Olympiacos posed more of a threat to Mikel Arteta’s side in the second half. But any lingering anxiety around the Emirates Stadium was quashed in the 92nd minute when substitute Bukayo Saka‘s low shot slipped through the goalkeeper’s legs, securing a 2-0 win and all three points. It was another relatively straightforward win for Arsenal even though things haven’t clicked just yet, given their new summer signings and a more direct style of play. Now, as they prepare for what could be a tricky home fixture against West Ham in the Premier League on Saturday, we delve into two of the latest stories surrounding the Gunners.
Martinelli backs Gyokeres to score 40 goals
Martinelli has backed his team-mate Gyokeres to score 40 goals in his debut season for Arsenal. The Swede has had a mixed start to life in north London, scoring three goals to kick off the campaign but struggling to make his mark in most games so far.
The £64million man, who made the switch from Sporting CP in the summer, has started to show glimpses of his true form in the last two matches, however, despite still not finding the net.
His influence was clear to see during the win against Olympiacos, where he played a pivotal role in the first goal and narrowly missed grabbing two for himself. Brazil international Martinelli is confident that it won’t be long before Gyokeres hits a hot streak, having not scored in five outings.
Martinelli praised the synergy with Martin Odegaard too, saying: “It’s really good to play with Martin Odegaard there because he’s always trying to find you, when we make the movement. And for Victor as well, his qualities as well, as he likes to go in behind and attack the opposition’s box.
“I think him playing with Martin as well is going to be good for him. We are going to try to give him the ball as much as possible to make him score, I don’t know, 30 or 40 goals a season.
“We are really happy with him, we trust him, we know his qualities and he’s one of the top strikers in the world right now. We trust him and we are trying to give him the confidence to score and to do his best on the pitch to help us.”
Club legend warns duo
Martin Keown has warned William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes that any slip-ups could lead to them being benched in favour of new signing Cristhian Mosquera. The central defensive duo of Saliba and Gabriel has been integral to what many consider to be the best defence in the country in recent seasons, facing little in the way of competition for their spots.
But 21-year-old Spaniard Mosquera, brought in for a bargain £17m from Valencia in the summer, showed he is more than capable of stepping up to the plate when Saliba was out injured at the start of this season.
Keown believes the two veteran defenders will improve knowing that a strong replacement is waiting in the wings to potentially take their place. The Arsenal hero said ahead of the West Ham clash: “Mosquera, the new acquisition, he’s really top draw.
“He has the same DNA as [Saliba and Gabriel]. Kiwior perhaps didn’t. He wasn’t as quick or as strong. It’s a high level [now] and [Mosquera] will push [Saliba and Gabriel] to play even better. They can’t make mistakes.”
Despite a slip-up leading to Newcastle‘s corner and subsequent goal last weekend, Mosquera has otherwise been impeccable in his eight outings this season.
