"He is going to be here [at the Arsenal training ground], hopefully more with ball at his feet than he has had," Arteta said earlier this month. "That will mean he is passing the ball and shooting and running and everything. He has done quite a lot already on the pitch working on his own. Next we need to arrange it with people around him in a more competitive training session and see how he goes with that. He’s getting closer, he’s stepping up and making a very good progress I would say. So, let’s see when we start to throw him in with the team, how he reacts and how fit he can get quickly."
But the 23-year-old's highly-anticipated comeback will have implications for one of his team-mates, who is poised to be sacrificed to make way for the Gunners star. Arteta has been forced to rely on Gabriel Martinelli, Leandro Trossard, Mikel Merino and Ethan Nwaneri to take responsibility for creating and scoring goals with Saka, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus all injured.
Now, the Spaniard must decide who to drop - and the ugly truth is the player he least wants to consign to the bench is the one who perhaps warrants it the most after a disappointing campaign.
With six goals in 24 league appearances, Martinelli needs only one more to surpass his total from last season. But the Brazilian will know the numbers he has been producing for the north London outfit fall below what's expected of him. The fact he is only one goal ahead of Saka - who hasn't played for four months - is worrying in itself. He's now gone eight games without a scoring since notching in the 2-2 drawwith Aston Villa.
Gabriel Martinelli Arsenal FC v Chelsea
Gabriel Martinelli has struggled to kick on after Jurgen Klopp's compliment
When he was 18, he earned the highest compliment from ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who hailed Martinelli a the 'talent of the century' after scoring twice in a chaotic 5-5 draw in the Carabao Cup between the two sides. T
alking about Liverpool’s youngsters, Klopp said: "Sepp van den Berg as well, he played an incredible game. That’s really difficult to deal with these guys. Martinelli’s pretty much the same age but he’s a talent of the century, he’s an incredible striker, so it’s really difficult."
Klopp's assessment may have been hyperbolic, but who could forget the impressive 15-goal haul he produced in the 2022-23 campaign, which nearly helped Arsenal secure the title?
Arsenal Training Session
Bukayo Saka has been out injured since November but is close to a return
There have been some moments of magic in the Arsenal red for Martinelli. But it's fair to argue that Martinelli hasn't truly kicked on in his career - if anything, he's regressed.
Merino and Trossard have delivered their own special moments to keep Arsenal mathematically in the title race and in the Champions League, while 18-year-old Nwaneri looks to be snatching away that 'talent of the century' tag. At the same time, Martinelli is going backwards and with Saka on the mend, he could be the man to make way
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