What next for Gabriel Martinelli after Eberechi Eze signing?

There’s obviously been a lot of talk about Gabriel Martinelli of late, given his quiet start to the season and the arrival of Eberechi Eze.

Martinelli has been such a mainstay of Mikel Arteta’s side over the last few years but there is no doubt that his place in the team is as under threat as it’s ever been.

There is serious competition over on the left hand side now and Martinelli’s struggles for consistency over the last couple of seasons has seen a big drop off in terms of his level of contributions.

Goals have dried up and right now he looks like a player who is really lacking belief and confidence, which was very evident with his performance at Liverpool before the international break.

A lot of fans believe an upgrade is needed on the left of the attack and although Eze is a different profile of player to Martinelli, that left sided position certainly looks his best route into the XI.

This is a big season for Martinelli, one that does feel pivotal in terms of where his future might lie.

There was talk about him leaving in the summer, but I don’t think that was ever really going to happen. It would have taken a big offer for Arsenal to consider a sale and one never arrived.

There was some interest from Saudi Arabia, but that’s as far as things went and I don’t believe that was a move that would have interested Martinelli at this point of his career.

I do think Arsenal’s stance over a potential sale could shift next summer, however, especially if Martinelli has another largely frustrating season.

He will have two years left of his deal by that point and with Arsenal needing to make some sales in the near future, the Brazilian could find himself towards the front of that queue.

Arsenal plan to accelerate contract talks with star duo

With the transfer window now closed the priority for Arsenal is to accelerate contract talks with Bukayo Saka and William Saliba.

Andrea Berta has done a good job when it comes to renewals since he arrived as sporting director, with Gabriel Magalhaes, Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly all penning new long term deals.

But arguably the two most important renewals are yet to be agreed, with Saka and Saliba both now into the final two years of their current contracts.

Talks have been ongoing for a while now with both players and Arsenal are confident that the discussions are going well and both will commit their futures to the north London club.

Bukayo Saka celebrates scoring for Arsenal against Leeds (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

I couldn’t say for sure when those deals will be agreed, because they are complicated and both Saka and Saliba were into the final year of their former deals before they last put pen to paper in 2023.

The hope at Arsenal is that neither negotiation will drag on as long as that this time around and the noises around Saka are certainly very positive.

Berta has had a lot on his plate since he arrived but he now does have a bit of time to really work on both renewals and Arsenal are confident that there will be progress soon.

Can Mikel Merino replicate his Spain form for Arsenal?

Several Arsenal players have caught the eye during the international break, but none more so than Mikel Merino.

What an exceptional hat-trick that was for Spain in their 6-0 win in Turkey. All of the finishes were excellent and perfectly showcased his impressive ability to find the net when he’s in and around the penalty area.

We obviously saw it last season when he played the makeshift strike role at Arsenal and this was just another example of how clinical he can be when he gets a sight of goal.

I do think he is an underrated player and he gets a lot of unfair criticism. A lot of people wrongly view him as a defensive player and we saw that in the reaction to his inclusion in the starting XI at Anfield before the international break.

Like others, I would have preferred to have seen someone like Eberechi Eze start that day against Liverpool. Playing Merino with Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi did feel like the conservative option in terms of creativity from midfield, but there is no doubt he offers a serious goal threat. He’s just very composed when he gets a sniff of a chance.

I think the biggest issue with him when it comes to Arsenal is it’s still not really clear exactly what type of player he is when it comes to the system Mikel Arteta plays.

When he is picked in midfield we very rarely see him drift into the type of space that allows him to get the sort of chances we saw him finish so well against Turkey.

So maybe if Arteta wants to get the best out of him he has to find a role that gives him a bit more freedom in and around the box.

Realistically though I don’t really see that happening unless he gets used as a striker, which is why I don’t ever really see Merino being a regular starter in this team if everyone is fit.

He’ll get plenty of minutes because Arteta rates him highly, but barring a spate of injuries I just don’t see him starting too many games, certainly in the league anyway.

But he’s a really useful squad player and I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him playing up front at Arsenal. He could still be a really good option there when needed.

Cristhian Mosquera deserves a run in the side while William Saliba is out

Of course it’s a blow to be without William Saliba. He’s one of the best centre-backs in the world and he’s part of, in my view anyway, the best centre-back partnership in the world.

So you want him fit and available all the time, especially at this stage of the season when Arsenal have some many tricky early fixtures to navigate.

I’ve seen the reports from France about a potential 3-4 week absence due to the ankle problem he picked up against Liverpool, but that’s not something I’ve had confirmed to me yet so I’m still not that sure if that timeframe is correct.

So we’ll see what happens and how quickly he recovers. Mikel Arteta will no doubt be asked about the situation at this Friday’s press conference.

The key thing for Arsenal if they are to be without Saliba, is they have so much strength in depth in defence that they have given themselves the best possible chance to be able to cope with missing such an important player.

Cristhian Mosquera may be young, but he’s got lots of top level experience and we saw when he came on at Anfield how impressive a defender he is. He coped with that situation exceptionally well and to be honest he’s barely put a foot wrong since he’s arrived at the club.

I think if Saliba does miss the next few games then it will be Mosquera who replaces him. That’s what he’s been signed to do and Arteta showed at Anfield that he has total faith in the former Valencia man.

There are other options of course. The hope is that Ben White will return from his injury this weekend against Nottingham Forest and he could play there, as could Jurrien Timber, with White playing at right-back. You could even play Riccardo Calafiori there if needs must.

But I don’t see that happening. Mosquera has shown his ability already since arriving in the summer and I’m sure Arteta will be happy to give him a run in the side alongside a leader like Gabriel.