Ian Wright says Gabriel Martinelli deserves more respect from Arsenal

Ian Wright said Gabriel Martinelli deserves "more respect" from Arsenal after the Gunners began their Premier League title defence with a 3-0 league opener victory over Coventry on Friday; Martinelli, 25, was left out of the squad for that match.

Martinelli made 53 appearances in all competitions last season, scoring 11 goals as Arsenal won the Premier League, but he was omitted from both the league opener and last weekend's Community Shield victory against Manchester City after the club invited offers for the forward.

Wright criticised Arsenal's handling of the situation, saying: "The way Martinelli is being treated at the moment, it really makes me feel uncomfortable." He added: "I know they might want him out, and a lot of people might say, 'yeah, it's time for him to move him on'. But there's ways of doing that and it should suit him as well, how he wants to leave."

Wright also expressed concern about Martinelli's place in the squad with new arrivals, saying: "If you bring Vini in, Martinelli can say to himself, 'OK, they've brought him in, they've brought Tzolis in, I might be third [in the pecking order].'" He continued: "But if you bring Tzolis in and have [Noni] Madueke on the other side, you're thinking to yourself, 'I can still have it with these two, I've got something to offer'. For him to be nowhere near it, it just makes me feel a bit sad for him."

Martinelli joined Arsenal from Ituano in 2019, has been part of the first-team squad throughout Mikel Arteta's time as manager, and has scored 62 goals in 278 appearances for the club. He has been described in the article as a popular member of the group.

Arsenal deny that Martinelli is being frozen out and attribute his absence to strength in depth; the club highlighted new signing Christos Tzolis impressing in Martinelli's preferred left-wing position against Coventry and also attempted to sign Vinicius Jr before the Brazil star agreed a new contract with Real Madrid.

The club have made clear they want at least one significant sale before the end of the transfer window and view Martinelli as among their most sellable assets alongside Gabriel Jesus and Fabio Vieira; the article states Martinelli has turned down a move to Galatasaray and "would be looking to move to a top European club should he leave the Emirates Stadium."

Asked about established players leaving, Arteta said: "It's a really tough moment, but you need to face that reality. You need to face it with real honesty and transparency because when you are on the other side, that's exactly what you need. You might not like what you've been told, but if it's truthful, if it's the reality, if it's honest and it's going to help you to make better decisions and have more clarity for the next steps in your career, you have to do that. Everything has a start and has an end. And when it comes to the end, our duty, and our responsibility is to do it in the best possible way, maintaining the respect and admiration for the player and the relationship, but understanding that at the end, we need to make football decisions."

Arsenal have invited offers for Martinelli and remain intent on making at least one major sale before the transfer window closes.