Pundit Gary Neville has hailed Arsenal duo Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli for their simply ‘magical’ performances.
Arsenal may have missed out on the Premier League title but Gary Neville has been dazzled by Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.
The Gunners have seen their title hopes fade away in recent weeks with Manchester City powering ahead of them.
Second place isn’t a bad season for Arsenal by any stretch, especially if you remember how their campaign ended last season.
This has been a fine season for Mikel Arteta and co to build upon though, especially because their young players have developed into stars.
Saka and Martinelli certainly fit that bill and have now been praised by Gary Neville – a pundit who isn’t always popular with Arsenal fans.
Gary Neville raves about Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli
Neville was speaking on Sky Sports (22/05, 11pm) as he and Jamie Carragher picked their players for the Premier League Team of the Season.
The former Manchester United ace picked Saka and Martinelli in his team whereas Carragher went for Mohamed Salah and Harry Kane.
Carragher couldn’t believe those choices but Neville passionately praised the Arsenal duo whilst defending his picks.
Neville believes that Saka and Martinelli have been simply ‘spectacular’ this season while adding that both have been ‘electric’.
Neville noted that he just ‘can’t forget’ how good both players were before Arsenal hit a ‘really really poor’ run of form.
Whilst Neville thought about Salah or Marcus Rashford, he felt that Saka and Martinelli were just ‘absolutely magical’ and ultimately ahead of the competition.
“I think Saka and Martinelli, up until the last few weeks, have absolutely lit up this league,” said Neville. “I think they’ve been spectacular, I think they’ve been electric. Some of the best play that I’ve seen all season has been from them two. I can’t forget that – look, I don’t like what I’ve seen from Arsenal in the last four or five weeks, I think it’s been really really poor, let’s be clear – and those two players have suffered, and I thought they would suffer by not having the right experienced players around them. For 30 games, they were magical, absolutely magical. They were at a different level, I believe, than Rashford or Salah. They’ve lit my season up,” he added.
The season isn’t ending perfectly for Saka or Martinelli.
Saka seems to be completely drained after a long season and he just hasn’t been at his best in recent weeks.
Martinelli is out injured after a blow against Brighton and Hove Albion, seemingly ending his season early.
Arsenal fans can still be excited about the future though and will expect big things from Saka and Martinelli next season.
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