Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli has claimed that criticism over his call-up for the Brazil World Cup squad is "normal", backing himself to show his ability on football's biggest stage. It comes after the forward was selected for Tite's 26-man squad for the upcoming tournament in Qatar.
It will see Martinelli join the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Neymar Jr, Vinicius Jr, Raphinha and more in a threatening forward line for the Selecao. While plenty were excited to see the 21-year-old in action for his nation, former Brazil midfielder Neto slammed the decision, brandishing it as a "joke".
He told Os Donos da Bola: "This is a shame, a joke! I feel ashamed! Not because of Dani Alves' story. What is Martinelli's story? 33 career goals. This is a shame, a lack of respect for football. Doing this with football shows that you don't deserve the position you are in. Calling up Martinelli and not calling up Gabigol [Gabriel Barbosa] is a lack of respect. The biggest shame of all the call-ups."
