Gabriel Martinelli hopes to spend his entire career at Arsenal, as talks over a new contract are set to accelerate.
The Brazilian was signed back in 2019 with one eye very firmly on the future. And three years on he is very much the here and now at The Emirates and one of Mikel Arteta’s most important players.
In eight Premier League games this season, Martinelli has three goals and has played a pivotal role in the Gunners’ brilliant start to the season. He is part of a young core in north London that looks set to finally seal a return to the Champions League for the first time in almost a decade.
But thoughts are already turning to the future and Martinelli - along with Bukayo Saka and William Saliba all look in line for bumper new deals. Negotiations for Saka and Saliba’s contract talks are believed to be further along than the winger's, but that isn’t to say it isn’t a priority.
And according to Mail Sport, the necessity to reach a new agreement with the 21-year-old could become more paramount, with Chelsea reportedly monitoring the situation closely. But if the player himself has anything to do with proceedings, he will be staying put with the club that brought him to European football three years ago.
“We have a young group, we have a lot of time ahead of us, players with a lot of quality, I think we will achieve great things. Our focus is the Champions League. Fighting for that top four. A club like Arsenal has to be in the Champions League. It’s our total focus,” Martinelli told ESPN Brasil earlier this year.
“We always want more. Of course, Arsenal are a giant team. If I can, I’ll stay here my whole life. I want to conquer things, as I said, I want to stay here and win titles, with these wonderful fans, my teammates.”
As for Chelsea and their new boss Graham Potter, they plan to be busy in the next 12 months, despite spending more than £200million in the most recent window.. The change of manager will naturally bring about a fresh focus when it comes to recruitment, with Potter praising the ambition being shown at Stamford Bridge.
He explained: “The guys are ambitious and they want to develop the club and the team. I'll never forget that my job as a head coach is to develop the players that are here and then to align decisions with the club when the transfer window is open.”
With a contract until 2024 and the option to extend for a further year, alarm bells won’t be ringing at the Emirates yet. And they will hope Martinelli’s very public stance on his Arsenal future will prove true when negotiations begin in the very near future.
