Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli has become a fan favourite around the Emirates but how does the Brazilian fare in comparison to his country’s legends?
Not many people knew who Gabriel Martinelli was until Arsenal forked out £6 million (Telegraph) for him in the summer. The Brazilian was expected to stay with the reserves and make his way up in the coming years but thanks to Unai Emery’s trust in him, he has started off his Arsenal career in fantastic fashion.
Martinelli has seven goals in seven appearances for the Gunners but he has only started four times. The 18-year-old is the highest scoring teenager in Europe’s top-five leagues at the moment which is a humongous feat considering that this is his first season away from his home country.
His impact for a club of Arsenal’s stature so early in his career makes you wonder how he fares with the other great Brazilians to play in Europe over the years and the result will shock you.
Only Ronaldo Nazario, arguably the greatest striker of all time, matches Martinelli’s seven goals in his first 400 minutes in Europe. Other massive names like Alex Pato, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Adriano and Neymar come nowhere near that number.
Pato scored three times for Milan in his first 400 minutes while Ronaldinho managed just two goals for Paris Saint-Germain in the same period. Ronaldo’s seven goals for PSV Eindhoven in 1994 was the highest number of goals scored by a Brazilian in Europe in his first 400 minutes but Martinelli’s 36th-minute strike against Liverpool on Wednesday broke the record.
This stunning stat is sure to excite Arsenal fans over the potential of their teenage sensation. The likes of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Neymar have gone on to do great things for their clubs and country and Martinelli, although on the right track, still has a long way to go to match his country’s greatest.
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