Mikel Arteta: ‘He is disappointed that he is not playing more, obviously, and I have spoken to him’

MIKEL Arteta is risking the wrath of angry Arsenal supporters as he continues to snub Brazilian wonderkid Gabriel Martinelli.

The 19-year-old striker was left sitting on the substitutes’ bench for six Premier League games in a row. That was until Sunday, when he was dropped from the squad altogether as the Gunners beat north London rivals Spurs 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.

Martinelli now hasn’t played for the club since mid-February when he was handed just 13 minutes against Benfica in a 1-1 draw in the Europa League round of 32 first-leg.

The fans’ favourite missed six months of 2020 with a serious knee injury, and since his return in December has missed further matches with niggling calf and ankle injuries.

But the hopes held by some supporters that Martinelli was just being eased back in slowly were dismissed yesterday (Wednesday) when Arteta admitted that the forward is “fully fit” and “disappointed” that he is not getting more game time.

Quizzed on why Martinelli hasn’t been playing, the Arsenal boss said: “If anything it’s my fault. He has done everything perfect, he trains incredibly well every day, and his attitude cannot be any better.

“He is disappointed that he is not playing more, obviously, and I have spoken to him.

“The competition for the front positions is very tough but he needs to be patient and he will get his chance.”

Arteta has the perfect opportunity to repay Martinelli’s patience tonight (Thursday) when the Gunners host Olympiakos in the last-16 second-leg of the Europa.

They already boast a 3-1 lead, and with a tough Premier League game away at West Ham on Sunday it’s a good time to call on fresh legs.

Arteta, however, insists he has no plans to rotate his squad, even with many of his international stars likely to play three games for their national teams the following week.

The Spaniard added: “It’s true that we have some players with some significant workloads but our priority is to win these next two games.

“If anything, national teams will have to adapt to what we want – we will not do the opposite way around.

“We are the ones who have to look after our players and who pay the players, so if anyone has to adapt, it’s the national teams – not us.”

The Europa League last-16 second-leg tie at the Emirates Stadium kicks off at 5.55pm.