It has no doubt been a surreal few months for Arsenal's Marquinhos, who is now making a name for himself at one of the biggest clubs in the world following a £3.5million move from Sao Paulo this summer.
The Brazilian was actually the first signing to be completed as part of a busy window for the club, with technical director Edu leading negotiations back in May. At the time, Globo Esporte claimed that the Gunners sought to build a relationship with Sao Paulo similar to that of Ajax's which led to the transfers of David Neres and Antony.
Although it's early days at the moment, it could be a partnership that would see the Brazilian side become Arsenal's 'feeder club', meaning several exchanges between the two could follow Marquinhos' move in the future.
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A 'feeder club' is one that provides experience through training and game time to younger players, with an agreement that its most successful stars can leave to join a team in a more prestigious league which, in this particular case, would be Arsenal.
If the report is to be believed, then Mikel Arteta and Edu will be rubbing their hands together in excitement after Marquinhos hit the ground running in north London. There is perhaps a mixture of both luck and hard work that has led to the 19-year-old being in the position he currently finds himself in, but the benefits can be huge.
Arsenal's investment in Marquinhos is viewed as one with the future very much in mind, a potential loan move was even considered as part of a plan to progress his development this season. However, an impressive attitude in pre-season along with three goals and an assist in two games for the Arsenal Under-21s resulted in a change of heart from senior figures.
"His language is not great yet but I think his physicality has been pretty exceptional, for someone who has come from Brazil and has a different way to train and play, but he’s done it," Arteta said. "I think he’s got the qualities for how we want to play. We will keep him here for another few months and make sure that he establishes himself at the club and in the team. Afterwards, we’ll see what the best movement is for his career."
Things could have turned out very differently for Marquinhos' early start to life at Arsenal had the club been successful in its attempts to bring in another winger, but now the youngster has his chance to send a message to the manager and he's certainly wasting no time.
A goal and assist on his competitive first-team debut away to FC Zurich in the Europa League last week has left many encouraged for what else is to come. According to GOAL Brazil, the Gunners are 'surprised' by the speed of Marquinhos' progress so far, putting him ahead of their initial expectations.
The report adds that his place in the team will remain dependent on performance and development, leaving the door open for a possible loan move in January. Despite this, the signs so far are positive and Marquinhos will be able to take comfort in knowing his teammate Gabriel Martinelli took a very similar path.
Martinelli also joined Arsenal as a bit of an unknown after arriving from Brazilian side Ituano in 2019 for around £6million. However, he too soon made it clear as to why the Gunners made their move. Possessing energy, pace, skill and an incredible attitude, the 21-year-old now finds himself as a senior Brazil international and has even been labelled as "the talent of the century" by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
It hasn't always been an easy journey for Martinelli, who has had to overcome injury setbacks and endure spells on the substitutes bench, but it is his elite mentality which has seen him become one of the Premier League's most exciting talents. For Marquinhos, he may still have a way to go in order to match the success of his fellow Brazilian, but he also has all of the tools to get there eventually.
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