Manchester United legend turned Premier League pundit Gary Neville was not impressed by Gabriel Martinelli's performance on Saturday. The Arsenal winger's crisis of confidence could see him dumped out of the starting XI as his replacement against Aston Villa, Leandro Trossard, swiftly set the Gunners on the path to a 2-0 victory.
The teams were still deadlocked at Villa Park by the time Martinelli was substituted for Trossard shortly after the hour mark. Two minutes later, the Belgian struck with pinpoint accuracy to justify his super-sub tag.
And he could graduate to the starting line-up against Brighton on Saturday, with Arteta admitting that his effective cameo has given the coaching team food for thought.
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"The competition is big, we have great players in each position and they are going to have to accept that," he told Sky Sports. "We have a huge season in front of us, a long one and you need players to make an impact. (Trossard) did that last year when he started and when he was a sub, and he has given us a headache for next weekend."
Serial Premier League winner Neville got a close look at left-winger Martinelli on Saturday and discovered that he is 'lacking belief', 'hesitating' and 'in need of attention'.
As a former right-back, his opinion on Martinelli's battle with Matty Cash and Kosta Nedeljkovic holds plenty of weight. And his conclusion doesn't bode well for the Brazilian when a player like Trossard is full of confidence and waiting for his chance to impress.
"That one player I would say just needs that little bit of belief back in his game is Martinelli," Neville said on Sky Sports. "It was really obvious to me because he was down here in front of us in the first half. I noticed it because when a winger is playing against a right-back I think, 'What would I not want?'
"There was a moment in the game when he was counter-attacking against Pau Torres and Matty Cash in the early part of the game.
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"You want him driving at the standing foot of a right-back and he’s definitely hesitating when he’s got the ball and not quite sure what to do.
"There were moments in that game where it was so obvious he had five or 10 yards head start on his right-back and the space to go was there. He’s one that needs a bit of care and attention at the moment because he’s not quite there."
