Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta will know that he cannot afford to be carrying passengers if his side is to finally overhaul Manchester City after finishing runner-up to Pep Guardiola’s side for the past two seasons.
The Gunners got back to winning ways at the weekend when they saw off local rivals Tottenham at the start of a week which sees a midweek trip to Atalanta followed by a trip to the Etihad to face the Premier League champions.
The form of Gabriel Martinelli has become a talking point in recent weeks with the Brazilian completing 90 minutes just once in the team’s opening four Premier League matches and failing to score or provide an assist in the process.
This comes after a 2023/24 campaign which saw him net just six league goals, down from the 15 in his previous breakout season, with some supporters calling for a change to be made.
In transfer deadline day loan signing Raheem Sterling, Arsenal have an experienced player ready to come into the side and Arteta may have shown his hand when he talked up the 29-year-old.
"After 10 seconds I knew we had to bring him (to Arsenal) because he really wanted it, and that was my only question mark, what stage is he at in his career?,” the Arsenal boss said ahead of the Spurs clash.
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“But after 10 seconds I knew. He looks great. He has got a big smile on his face, a lot of energy and he wants to prove a point. When someone has got that in their belly you sense it straight away. I don’t need to discuss his quality and what he can bring to the team."
Sterling was pushed out of the first-team picture at Chelsea this summer amid another influx of new arrivals, as Arteta made an opportunistic move for the player he previously worked with at Manchester City. He made his Gunners debut when he replaced Martinelli for the final ten minutes of the north London derby, but could now be ready to compete for the Brazilian’s starting spot.
Asked where Martinelli sat in his pecking order, Arteta said, "We need wingers with ability to go one vs one, to attack the spaces, to have the work rate, to increase the goal threat from every position and we have players who can play in various positions in the front line, especially because we have some injuries there. In the past, we have to be protected and all the players we have here have these qualities."
In FourFourTwo's opinion, however, Arteta is more likely to be asking something more of Sterling, as much as Martinelli. The Brazilian offered not just threat but work rate and willing to track back against Tottenham – and the Gunners manager stating that he needs a complete option in attack could be seen as him throwing down the challenge to Sterling to refine his game, as much as it is Martinelli to raise his.
Arsenal kick off their Champions League campaign on Thursday evening, ahead of a Sunday afternoon kick-off at the Etihad.
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