The Brazilian media are starting to catch on to just how well Gabriel Martinelli is performing at Arsenal, comparing him with other young prospects to move to Europe.
It was only a matter of time before the Brazilian media took a keen interest in Gabriel Martinelli and his progress this season. He is up to 10 goals and three assists for Arsenal, despite his age.
UOL call him a ‘phenomenon’ and compare his goal record with other Brazilian debut seasons in Europe. They highlight that Martinelli’s one goal every 112 minutes is second only to Gabriel Jesus in 2016/17 (one every 106 minutes).
Even then, Jesus had the advantage of barely playing. He only spent the second half of the 2016/17 campaign with City and played 741 minutes. Easier to have a better ratio with a few goals in those circumstances.
UOL compare Martinelli’s first season to Neymar’s with Barcelona. The PSG winger arrived in Europe a few years later, at 21, and he scored 15 times in 41 games. Martinelli is well on the way to matching that.
Of course, Neymar brings so much more than just goals. He got 11 assists in that same season and won a few penalties as well. His dribbling is top class too. Martinelli is a long way off that kind of impact, but it’s nice to hear him in the same breath anyway.