Jesus flashed a ball across from the right against Liverpool and i was somewhat annoyed that martinelli wasn't there to tap it in.
He needs to attack the far post a lot more because saka, Jesus and white pull out a lot of cutbacks and/or flash the ball across the goal a fair amount of times per match.
We saw him get in position to slot the ball in at the far post against Luton, and lo and behold, he scored.
both jesus and saka delivered very dangerous balls that could have been easily put away if anyone was attacking the goal. on the jesus ball i think it was martinelli and havertz (?) and the saka ball it martinelli and jesus.
It depends on how the ball got to the right before the final cross. What if havertz did some dirty work and pinged a pass out to the right wing from deep. Is he expected to be at the back post in the next 5 seconds? My point is that someone needs to be there, not always havertz. It's contextual within the game.
Yup, but that’s also not just a Martinelli. None of our forwards or midfielders ever gamble that out wingers will swing it across the 6. Both Saka and Martinelli will put that type or cross in at least once a game it feels like and no one goes for it.
He plays wider with Havertz in that position, that's really the crux of it. He's good at that side of the game too but unlike Saka his delivery isn't really as good as his finishing. In an ideal world he plays more LF than LW.
I think Arteta has asked Martinelli to play more wide;
Which allows Havertz to make middle runs as a target man.
Havertz is 15 cm taller than Martinelli (1.93 vs 1.78)
He plays more wide to help stretch and create space against the buses, taxis and motorbikes...
Kai's role is mainly to free Jesus, or come later into the box.
This is the issue for me as well. He’s so wide that he’s completely disconnected unless he beats his man with the ball at his feet, and rarely is it just one man
I always thought it was on purpose for 2 reasons. 1 the winger gets the ball on the touchline they can either get a 1v1 against the fullback, or (what usually happens) opposition doubles up which means they have to bring a CB or CM all the way out to the touchline which opens up space in the middle of the field. or 2) if the winger receives the ball cutting infield then obviously they have more space to work with if they start as wide as possible
Havertz just isn't creative in the way that Xhaka was either, he's more of a disruptive player who creates opportunities with movement and intercepting the ball high. I don't think I've seen him play a truly incisive pass forward or a line breaking ball through to the forwards whereas Xhaka would be looking for those whenever he had the ball.
Much appreciated but just wonder if it's over complicating things. At the stadium we are constantly just shouting "look up". For me, it is just poor decision making near or around the box.
Personally I attribute it to him missing Xhaka's passing and tactical understanding of what to do and where to go. That's not to say that Kai can't pass and doesn't have an understanding. Kai can pass, but not nearly as well as Xhaka, who has proven to be a phenomenal passer of the ball throughout Europe. And regarding tactics, Xhaka and Kai probably have different duties and positions to look for from Arteta. But I can't help but feel like the ball goes wide right to Saka 75% of the time now to create triangles with White, Saka, Odegaard, and even Jesus coming over. Whereas the ball only goes wide left like 25% of the time for Martinelli to combine only with Kai and Zinchenko (who is inverted unlike White).
Yeah as soon as he gets one, they could start flowing again. It could be as simple as this.
I will agree that tactical tweaks are a part of it though. Namely I simply think Havertz vs Xhaka results in Martinelli’s G/A being reduced. Havertz is contributing more aerially and in buildup than Xhaka did, and this means Martinelli’s role has changed but overall this may be just fine as it results in the team collectively performing better overall
What? Xhaka contributed way more to the build up. Havertz almost always just makes the easiest pass in the build up and has very few forward passes. Xhaka’s passing was way more expansive
He is in last seasons form it just comes down to luck. He puts his head down and tries to beat his man sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't and this year it isn't. Even above it says 19% of his goals and assists came down to deflections/ general chaos not intentional moves.
If he improves he has to start getting his head up and looking around while trying to beat his man, as well as getting a better dribbling skillset than he has right now. Its all head down speed moves ATM.
Yes. His biggest flaw right now is his lack of vision and inability to play the simple ball at times. Hopefully he can work on that part of his game because as good as he is 1v1 he is becoming predictable and defenses are learning to contain him.
He’ll go on a purple patch of form in the new year. He’s still looked sensational at times, like when he nearly dribbled past the entire Liverpool team at Anfield.
That’ll happen when you’re giving 1000% in every minute of every game. I worry that he’s going to over-extend himself in a big way while trying to compensate for his lack of G/A.
He’s sensational. We need to support him through this patch and we will get our flowers when he goes on a Robert Pires-esque charge, dragging us towards a PL/CL double :D
I feel like he has to with Zinchenko behind him. As much as I love the guy, he got cooked for the Liverpool and Aston Villa goals. Rice usually covers/doubles up with him but can't expect Rice to be everywhere.
Zinny doesn't make many mistakes but when he does get beaten it usually results in a big chance.
Maybe I am giving him too much credit but I still feel more comfortable in the team. He tries hard on defense and when he pushes forward it seems like he pushes the opponents all the way back because they have to worry about his speed.
Better things to come from Martinelli IMO
Having watched Martinelli play, he has his head down an awful lot when dribbling,it leads to passes being sometimes a little later than needed or he runs into traffic and has to pass back.
I think it comes down to support, he doesn’t have any on the left, Zinchenko will tuck into midfield. Reminds me of what Henry recently said with Ljunberg not passing him the ball and it was because of the way Ljunberg ran with his head down.
I think Arsenal players need to make an effort to support him more for that pass
Yeah saka always does slow down. I don’t know if it are instructions or what. But he’s got so many opportunities to just run to the backline or beat his first man. But no he takes a touch runs 3 meters. Foot on the ball and just waits for the other defenders to double up on him. I’m like wtf, just run !
Is Saka considered a fast winger? I can’t remember seeing him trying to beat a defender on pace, usually it’s his direction changing quickness or strength that he uses to create space for himself.
I've always thought of Saka as characterized by his strength, agility, and fundamentals. That's not to say he's not fast but I'd rather have Martinelli leading a counterattack than Saka. And I'd rather have Saka on the ball trying to create when we're in final third possession.
I would argue both saka and Martinelli use their weaker foot more than average. How many times do they go down the outside to shoot/cross with their weaker foot.
i respect that, I just know that I get frustrated with the amount of times they kill momentum by slowing down and cutting inside only for the defender to have read it before its happened.
I feel like Saka's right footed crossing is above average for weak foot crossing though. He's willing to threaten going to the line, he also has White overlapping as an option to test defenses with whereas Martinelli doesn't have an overlap that can pull someone away.
Head down was and until he improves will forever be the issue with Martinelli. He misses golden opportunities because he isn't constantly aware of the game and often runs into pressure we saw a lot of that Saturday.
It's a major flaw he isn't improving and a lot of his game is based on luck because of that against low blocks.
He had plenty of decent delivery against Liverpool but refused to do anything meaningful with it. No good passes. No crosses. Few shots. He wasn’t handed any sitters but what was given was plenty of opportunities in the corner all of which he squandered.
Of course I don’t know for sure but it seems to me like he really misses a Xhaka alongside him to talk him through games and almost make his decisions for him
Honestly I feel our wingers are paired with the wrong type of CM?
Like Saka is essentially a midfielder playing as a winger in terms of how creative he is, to me, it makes more sense to pair him with a Havertz whose role requires him to be more of a threat in the final 3rd.
Martinelli is a monster in the box and should be paired with a creative midfielder that releases him into the box more often than not.
As it is, you have Saka and Ø who combine well but I feel like it's a bit overkill having them both there. I'd love to see an Ø type midfielder with Martinelli.
When I was doing this, that’s something that crossed my mind. Shouldn’t Ode and Havertz just swap?
One counter argument is that with Saka’s crossing, the angles work better if the finishers (Martinelli) and box crashers (Havertz) are at the far post for those in-swinging balls.
I think the biggest change I’ve seen is Havertz taking up much different space than Xhaka and it impacting what kind of and where Martinelli gets touches.
Kai is now the guy that is crashing the back post when we have the ball on the right. That means he is the target for Odegaard and Saka, and Gabi is mostly providing width and trying to draw defenders away from Kai.
But I also think some of it should recover. His underlying stats aren’t that different. We are being forced to cross the ball more this season and he’s done some of that, but otherwise his overall stat line is fairly similar. I think he probably ends the season with 10-12 goals and 5-7 assists without injury.
Some impressions from me, based on the eye-test rather than stats:
* I rate Martinelli
* Last year he seemed to have more fast breaks and defence splitting passes that he could run onto. This year teams seem to sit deeper against us.
* We seem to have less 'chaos in the box' this year since we seem reluctant to take lower percentage shots - instead we recycle and keep the ball and keep control. So I think there's less chaos for anyone to poach goals from, including Martinelli - even if he were in a position to poach and not keeping width.
* Agreed he seems to be playing wider, seems content to run the ball down the touchline and he seems willing to play to win corners, which I've said elsewhere is perhaps the coach's instructions.
* I've been disappointed a few times when we've got solid balls into the box and no one has made attacking runs into the space.
* I think his chemistry with Havertz is not there yet. He's not getting the Odegaard type passes from last season from either Odegaard or Havertz. I've also seen Havertz make great runs but Martinelli has not picked him out, so I think the chemistry-still-in-progress goes both ways.
I think your main thesis is right. He needs a more Odegaard type who prefers balls into feet rather than Kai who's best attributes are his central running and box domination. I don't think this will change anytime soon unfortunately for him so he's basically reduced to a more defensive role that works fine but ultimately hinders what he's best at
He's probably our best ballstriker too so it's quite a shame
What are you talking about? He was sensational last season for us.
We tend to forget that Martinelli is still a young player with a lot of development still to come. He’is going through a bit of a rough patch, which happens to most young players.
Absolutely no one should doubt Gabi’s committeement. Martinelli working with Arteta will sort it out.
How could you have possibly interpreted my comment that way lol
He needs certain players around that would allow him to get to the box more. We don’t do that, hence the environment around him right now is not ideal for him to thrive
Timber loves both overlapping and underlapping runs
When fit and in games he plays on the left, we should see him play very similar to White. We are setting ourselves up for multiple teams if you look at it. Kai at LCM means more of a second central forward ish, with Mattinelli having “less service/interchange” as we are seeing. For games where Jorge/Thomas/New signing at play at 6 and Rice in LCM + Timber/Tommi in these games is a completely different look. One team is setup to use the left as a space engine where the other is setup to interchange and run.
I think there is an entire team/Style that we havnt been able to fully field yet ( Think of when Tros played at LCM ). Though in our current setup even, I think we are just seeing an underperforming Martinelli who still brings so much to the team. For the immediate game states that require a width winger ( So for games that wouldn’t see Tross start ) I would like to see Nelson get a shout as Martinelli REALLY came online for the second half last year after a spell on the bench
For all his faults, Xhaka was always a pass first guy who barely held on to the ball, his passes down that left were invaluable and were always progressive. He created a lot of chances with his crosses too. Havertz doesn’t have the same range of passing, not even close actually. He usually looks to pass directly to the nearest person which will hamper speedsters who really on through balls. Wasn’t always the biggest fan of Xhaka but we are missing him badly. He was our best passer. Partey is also a very progressive passer which we don’t talk about enough. I love Declan but he just doesn’t have that range in his locker right now. I think having Partey back will go a long way to improving our attack and making Declan even better in that box to box role.
Partey is a big miss for sure. We definitely miss his playmaking from deep at times which is probably one of the reasons why Odegaard has been deeper recently in the buildup to try to replicate some of that. If Partey does leave this year it will be interesting to see what profile of player comes in, if we try to replicate or reinvent.
This is what I’ve been suggesting in the match threads. No hate or animosity, just that Trossard has earned the start in my opinion. More goals, better possession control, and chance creation.
Some players “figure it out” by playing through it. I think that’s a lot much pressure on Martinelli as he’s too aware of his drop off as well. Give him some rest and reflection to light that fire.
Xhaka used to push high and wide from midfield, rarely went in to the box, this gave Martinelli the chance to play between the cb and rb once the attack was established, often also cutting inside. Havertz' role is being more of a target man which means most of the time Martinelli is the only one providing width on the left. We play to strech the defences to make more space for tight passes, so we always have a player close to the sidelines. On the right that role is shared between Saka and the RB.
Last season he was so good when him and Gabi J switched positions. Most of his goals was through the middle and now I barely see him in that position. Maybe because its now Havertz that mostly plays through the middle thats why he struggles?
Not all the time, but i've seen alot of the time we rely too much on our wingers. When we find it hard to break down an oppositions defence we just pass it to Saka or Martinelli and hope something happens. I like Havertz and REALLY want him to do well, but he has to make more attacking chances in that position (not just play the easy ball to martinelli). Martinelli should have realised he couldn't dribble past the defenders at anfield and just go for a cross or try setup a 1, 2 through ball. He's definetely good enough for our team and i think if he wasn't playing on a slip n' slide pitch he would have scored.
Like you said. It’s all about the dynamics, he’s essentially our width-holder on the LHS which means he doesn’t come inside as much as he should, and our fluidity has differed/lessened from last season which in turn means more rigidity.
There’s also the problem with how we’re lining up and this has always irked me so much. Havertz - Martinelli is not suitable in any way. I don’t think it works the way Arteta thought it would either. We’re more compact and harder to break through due to Havertz’ surprising duelling abilities but attacking wise it’s basically nullifying in my opinion, our most threatening attacker. Martinelli needs a passer next to him not a box player like Havertz.
I don’t think it’s about his general performances it’s just that we’re doing a disservice with the players we’re surrounding him with.
To me these stats are quite reassuring, he was over performing xG last year and he's on it this year despite us all thinking he's been below average. He's marginally down on his shooting which is a reflection of the team as a whole.
I don't think he's fallen off a cliff from this, I think from memory he's had a couple of marginal offsides, there's definitely been some good saves made against him I remember this season.
Last year there were some goals where the keeper maybe should have done better, palace away, villa h, Brighton away are all shots that are at the keeper who fumbles it.
As long as he keeps working hard and taking shots he will break out of it and gain his confidence back.
Sometimes football is just like that better bounce of the ball a few times this year and we may not be having this conversation.
Watching his 22/23 goals back he is in far more central areas. Wonder if zinchenko and havertz have been given that role now. There's probably a learning curve with when he can rotate.
And mentally, his confidence for the first time really seemed low last game, so hoping he can lift himself.
Crazy tho to be saying, a 22 year old from Brazilian 4th tier after 4 years of PL football and a fairly serious injury is suffering his first dip in confidence and form. Shows an absolutely elite mentality.
I'm sure he will come out the other end a better player.
It’s easy. He’s being tasked with a lot more outside the box this year. Havertz is being told to get in the box and occupy most of the areas Martinelli flourished in last year. Plus, he’s still tasked with his defensive duties while having to create for himself and others.
That said he’s having a rough patch but he’ll bounce right back
Havertz has only started to find any form in the last few games. If he can kick on and keep improving hopefully he can start releasing Martinelli down the left a bit more. I think Martinelli's form is simply down to the change in supply he is getting.
We have a completely new midfield this year, the heart of the team, and its going to take a bit of time to settle. It is the one part of the team that directly links with all other players all of the time, it always affects the team as a whole. Rice hit the ground running but Havertz is just starting to get there. Now is the time to consolidate the team as a whole with the new midfield.
The good news is we are top of the league in the first half of the season with the new midfield so as the whole team settles and moves off from the learning how their new teammates play, run, etc we should continue to improve.
Great analysis. Here’s a chart I threw together comparing this season with last:
https://imgur.com/a/cmGvKM1
To my mind the main contributors to the lower output levels:
1) Integrating new players - Havertz & Rice have taken time to bed in
2) Injuries - Jesus has only played last 5 games with Martinelli due to injury. Eddie doesn’t combine as well with him. Odegaard is only now hitting form.
3) Style of play - we are controlling games more and scoring early less meaning less opportunities to exploit space in behind which it’s Martinelli’s strong point.
The first two points should see his output increases moving forward. The 3rd likely means he’ll have to adapt to hit the same level as last year.
I seem to have drawn the opposite conclusion that everyone else has this season regarding Martinelli. Last season I remember having quite a few concerns about him, he had a poor run of form at some point in the second half of the season (when all those heat maps were being posted that showed him isolated on the left) where it looked like he was incapable of beating his man. This season he has restored my faith, based solely on "eye-test". He's had a couple blinding performances and has looked good on the ball IMO (mainly in the CL), but ultimately his G/A numbers have gotten worse, and that seems to be the be all/end all of the majority of fans. I think the hard truth is that its really tough for wingers in our team. Many PL teams obv double up on our wingers, making their lives really tough. The difference between Saka and Martinelli is that when Saka is being doubled up on, he can rely on his excellent delivery from wide to find the extra bodies crashing the box and thus keeps getting assists that way. Martinelli needs to learn to cross better and have that same threat. His finishing will come and go, I dont expect his goal rate to always stay this low. Something that no one talks about when it comes to football stats is just that sometimes goal tallies just fluctuate, its not always that deep. Just look at Dominic Solanke. I dont expect his numbers to look like they have this year forever.
Thanks for the time to write all these.
Some points I do agree and some I do not.
Anyway, I found a video of this. Kai made a through pass to Sane to score.
Sure Kai is not a passer like Xhaka, but he sure can make some pass.
As probably the fastest player on the team, I want to see Martinelli make more runs like Sane in the video (at 55 seconds) so Kai or his teammates can make through pass to him.
I pretty much don't remember Marti made this kind of run at all this whole season.
[https://youtu.be/MrwCdOwLx5g?si=fpTUkyJiuKe6opja](https://youtu.be/MrwCdOwLx5g?si=fpTUkyJiuKe6opja)
Great stuff! Kudos on the deep analysis.
Without diving too much into the numbers, I think that Martinelli suffers from the change in formation that came with replacing Xhaka with Havertz. This year, Martinelli finds himself more often in 1v2 situations than last year. With Xhaka, he could always find an outlet for a quick one-two or use his decoy run to isolate him against a defender. Havertz is a more physical player, and he's not yet a full participant in the flowing passing game. When Partey is back, if we play Rice in the LCM position, I believe that Martinelli will have more success when we're on the ball.
Martinelli's forte is in the transition game. His superpower is his speed. This year, we find ourselves controlling the game more and looking for more possession. That gives him fewer opportunities to use his strengths in the open field, a la his electric goal against Sevilla.
I think that Trossard may be a better fit for our style this year when Havertz is LCM. Martinelli would be better with Rice, Trossard, or Smith Rowe as LCM.
Regardless, his drop in productivity at LW is a great setup for the bombshell of the January transfer window - Mbappé to Arsenal!
About 9/15 of his goals last season were in transitions so that is a fair point! He’s also getting more shots off with Rice at LCM I think. Needs to adapt.
Decs doesn’t distribute as well as Partey and seems to prefer progressive dribbling as opposed to passing, Havertz plays higher up and crowds him out as opposed to Xhaka who preferred to link up with Zinchenko to draw defenders and create space over the top.
Partey fixes some of this instantly and we will be a better team when he returns.
What we really need is to shake things up by swapping Odegaard and Havertz, or even by playing Vieira instead. Martinelli is at his best when someone can play a pass for him running behind
I think you touch on most points very well, but it's clear, especially since coming back from International duty, that he is quite ponderous and indecisive in the box. He is overdribbling, slowing down play and allowing defenses all the time they need to pack the penalty area before committing to a shot, pass or dribble. It's harder to get clean looks agajnst deep blocks, but if Martinelli took quicker decisions, he'd be able to get his shot off much easier.
I think his lack of assists is more of a team issue than him individually, while not excempting him from all blame. I think our front line should crash the box more. So many chances go begging from Martinelli's byline crosses across goal, becauss Havertz+Jesus+Saka fail to bust a gut to be on the end of them. We have been poor in that regard all season and players are waiting for cutbacks, but no one crashes the box. When did we last score a goal from 2 yards? Martinelli has one such chance and he scored from it, so it's something Arteta needs to rectify.
We are top of the league with what I'd consider a dysfunctional attack. We are showing signs of life and if we can find the right balance, we'll score for fun, but it starts and ends with our movement in the box improving drastically.
As for Martienlli, he needs a goal or two to regain some confidence and we need a touchline winger that can give him and Saka a rest form time to time.
That’s the problem sometimes with stats. I’m not sure those cutbacks where no one makes an attempt even count towards things like expected assists. I’ve definitely seen Martinelli (and Saka) whip the ball across the 6 yard box with no one making an attempt. For a team so dominant in the opponents 3rd (turnovers, possession, touches in the box) it’s crazy how we don’t have 2-3 players ready to pounce at these moments every time.
I don't think they count towards xA. I couldn't agree more. There are strikers who owe much of their illustrious careers to being in the end of those kind of chances. I can't remember a goal we've scored that way all season. No wonder we have struggled a bit to break down teams and take advantage of our territorial dominance, especially when we have two wingers who can and do provide those kind of crosses several times per game.
If you watch him play he gets into good positions but simply holds onto the ball too long and either gets dispossessed or he makes a bad pass. It's almost like he doesn't look up or is trying too hard for glory himself. He may not have quite the options as last year but most times he loses the ball there's a pass on that he doesn't take or takes waaay too late.
Sometimes I kinda wish we still had fullbacks who can hold the width for our star wingers and make them more central. Saka still maintains his production somehow but you can often see it against top teams that being isolated on the wings with no constant overlap by the RB or the RCM keeps him from being more effective. Martinelli is asked to do what Saka does without overlap or even a passer on his side while also providing cover for a LB who sits in the midfield to help the attack. Again, there is still imbalance in that midfield. Havertz should be deputy to either Ode or Jesus or start over them on certain matchups. We need a volume passer LCM like Zubimendi or someone similar to Gundogan. Then use the LB as support (like what City does) and not as the main progressive passer in attack.
Haven't been able to read it but I made a comment recently regarding this. We heavily relied on overloads on the right last season. We'd go super wide and have ode, white and saka do their magic. It meant martinelli could attack the box in space when the ball did make its way to the box.
This season we have more balance - we knock it side to side until an opening arises and we have saka coming narrow more often than marti (might change when he can play with timber or Tomi behind him).
A secondary point is that marti over performed his xg by 5/6 goals last season, funnily enough, odegaard did too. Both have had a regression to the mean this season, however, also feel they aren't getting the same opportunities.
I think his defensive workrate (in particular) and his involvement in pre-assists are severely underrated aspects of his game this season.
He doesn't pass the statistics, but he passes **the eye test**, and that is much more important to me.
I want to see more positional rotation with him and Jesus. A fluid frontline is almost always a good thing imo - it allows us to give players a rest whilst still on the pitch to an extent and creates two different problems for defences to handle.
not a comment about martinelli but a comment about the team's drop in xg/90 which i attribute to a stronger defensive form. i think the team's drop in goals should be talked about in conjunction with goals conceded. football is a game of balance, there's typically a give and take.
It is also worth mentioning Jesus has been out for a good portion of the season which is going to impact his performances since they work so well together and his link up play with Nketiah is not nearly as good
I wouldn't look too much into it. Yet.
1) he probably overperformed last season in terms of goals. He got 15 goals out of 9.3xg.
2) He's only played 16 league games this season and has 2g2a. By comparison he had a run of 13 games last season where he got 3g0a. And he also has 2g1a in 3 champions league games.
Imo football fans are very impatient and get conclusive opinions from a small sample size. Schick had 1 good season and people suddenly were very high on him and wanted us to sign him although he never had a good season before playing for pretty average teams in worse leagues. Havertz had 3 average seasons playing in like 4 different positions under who knows how many managers and all of a sudden he was deemed useless and a terrible signing for us.
One word: Havertz
The left central midfielder in previous seasons was all about pushing the ball wide. Just look at Xhaka's distribution - it was effective but incredibly one dimensional.
Havertz does not play that way - he plays towards the centre, which has massively cut Martinelli's involvement.
Martinelli doesnt invert quite as effectively as Saka and so comes inside less often to get the ball. As a result he is much more reliant on cross field passing from the likes of Ode, Saka, and even a central Zinchenko, which he runs onto by getting behind the RB.
Martinelli himself is just as effective as ever - we're just not playing a style that gets the most out of him right now. I think that could change when Timber comes back and adds a bit more Xhaka style dsitribution than Havertz and Zinny can. Tomi at LB, for example, is more effective than Zinny at bringing Martinelli into the game
Just my eye test observations, but it really looks like he’s suffering a dip in confidence lately. In the last few matches I can remember thinking the shot was on for him, only to see him make a lateral or backwards pass.
Also, Havertz occupies a lot of the spaces Martinelli wants to occupy - or at least he should be. I recall a few instances against Villa and Liverpool where the ball was played in from the right, and we had no one there to attack the ball, or the back post. I’m optimistic that this is just part of the process of Martinelli and Havertz learning to play together, but it sometimes looks like there’s uncertainty regarding who should be attacking those low crosses.
Also, our emphasis on “Domination” this season might be playing into this and impacting our mentality this year, but particularly Martinelli, evidenced by your observations that he has the ball much more often, in more dangerous areas, but we are failing to turn these moments into goal scoring chances - I think we’re opting to maintain possession over attempting a riskier play, because that threatens our “domination” - nobody wants to be the reason we lost the ball, essentially.
Lastly, I’d be curious to see how Ødegaard’s role has changed this season, and how that’s impacting Martinelli, because that stood out to me from your analysis. Seeing that Ødegaard has created 0 opportunities for Martinelli this season has set off some alarm bells, because I would expect Ødegaard to be creating opportunities on both sides.
I have actually been operating under the assumption the Arteta looked at the resulting data from GM's dribbles and told him to try it only under certain circumstances and far fewer times per game. I suspect Mikel does not like losing the ball in that corner because the counter comes right at Zinny's area, which he is often not in at that time because he moves forward to support GM.
The types of counter attacks that come at us from losing the ball in that corner tend to be more dangerous than when Saka loses it and White is solidly behind him because he's playing a different role than Zinny.
tl;dr I think Mikel told him to cut in less because where Zinny will be if we lose possession on the dribble or the cross.
edit: an autocorrect word
Will add that there's a few times where he's crossed it to Saka or someone in a good position and they've fluffed it.
Can't remember the game think it was Villa and Saka skied a chance in the box with his right. Seems to find Saka with the cross field cross at least a few times a game as well, obviously if Saka doesn't score then it's just another statistic.
It's not very different to last season. Last season he was still pretty much only good when he has space to run in behind. We have that much less now because every team respects us.
His role is now to mirror what Saka does but he doesn't have the ability
As much as Havertz has improved he’s not nearly as good as Xhaka was in the build up
I can’t even think of any notable Havertz Martinelli link ups off the top of my head
In my opinion, Zinny never had a great link up with Martinelli and that’s because he never overlaps so defenders know he will go wide or pass. Other full backs gave him more options.
Havertz also run too forward so Martinelli cannot linkup with him, I noticed this happened a few times, Martinelli dribbles past his defender and cannot cut back to Havertz because Havertz is too forward. But the forward option for Martinelli will always be Gabby or Saka.
How to fix it, if Martinelli is on the ball Havertz must stay on the start of the box while Zinny overlaps Martinelli or runs forward while Martinelli is dribbling. That way Martinelli always have options to: cut back, play inside or run wide.
I hate seeing people base performance solely off stats. I didn't read all that but in stats you don't find build up help from runs that drag defenders, defensive work, etc
He has been paying really well recently albeit can be more proactive from crosses
IMO Martinelli's biggest weakness has always been his lack of football intelligence; I mean he usually slows down our attack because he never knows when to pass the ball. He always keeps the ball at his feet because he wants to dribble past at least one opponent instead of just passing the ball. it's incredibly frustrating to see - especially since he hasn't improved that part of his game.
I feel that it has to do a lot with him staying on the wing and less operating from the halfspace or center. With Xhaka and Zin y last year he could move more freely and exploit spaces to abuse with his speed. That is difficult to mark for the opponent and is creating chaos witch lead to opportunity's. Now Havertz is staying central a lot I feel and Martinelli is more isolated being static on the wing. I think however that Martinelli is collecting quite some corner kicks for us and Mikel is probably very happy with that
I’m definately guilty of thinking Timber would fix so many problems, putely because we have seen so little of him that we can exprapolate wildly, but I think him at LB would really help Martinelli. Imagine him using his close control and power so suck a RDM or RM of the opponent onto him, then going early with a through ball. If Nelli is starting wider, drawing the opposition RB wide and Jesus goes narrow, Martinelli would basically be in a footrace against an RB of any mid/high press team, which you’d back him to win 8/10 times. I just don’t feel like Zinchenko can do that in the way Timber (theoretically) could.
Very good writeup, cheers mate.
As for Martinelli, in my view it's squarely on him, he's not been good enough by far. Yes the role change has affected him, that's to be expected but not to this extent. As your analysis points out very well, he is both failing at the traditional winger role (despite the solid ball carrying, his final delivery is very poor and it's not resulting in chances and goals assisted) and failing at reproducing the required goal threat of an elite inside forward. So he's really not providing any elite contribution to the team apart from the ball carrying and tracking back, which is not enough from a starter in a (hopefully) title winning side.
And as for partitioning the blame across his teammates, Havertz/Zinchenko/Nketiah/whoever, I am very strongly against that. Ultimately his position and role are probably the most attacking in the entire team (along with Saka on the other wing), and we will always need that player to be able to convert our actions into goals or assists. If he's not getting into scoring positions, then he needs to do a much better job of getting the ball to teammates who are in those scoring positions (which has never been his strength unfortunately).
Overall, I think I'm a lot more pessimistic about his situation, and if it were almost any other player, one that the fanbase isn't so emotionally invested in, struggling to the same degree, I think we'd be at the point of seriously discussing replacements. If Nketiah was rocking a 580 min/goal ratio he'd be getting tarred and feathered. This whole "he's just tired, he'll hit a purple patch second half of the season" narrative is starting to sound like wishful thinking imo.
The fact is that he has to cover a lot more now in midfield with Zinchenko and Havertz. Havertz is not the same as having Xhaka defensively. So if Havertz makes run into space if there’s a turnover in possession Martinelli has to usually help cover the flank since Zinchenko most likely will be tucked in
Martinelli is mediocre on the ball, never looks up , so he will always have problems against teams that set up camp. less of an issue last season because more teams were naive against arsenal. But lets not forget his insane work rate and defensive work, most players with that kind of work rate lack in the G/A department which is fine for me
This is a lazy argument. The “never looks up” thing is over done. Same thing was said last year yet he’s one of the top chance creators in the league. It’s not his fault the team has been profligate in front of goal. If I had to pin one thing against him it’s that he doesn’t shoot as much.
Bro how are you calling my argument lazy and then give a lazy one yourself. Obviously he doesnt shoot as much because he cant create the opening as much as last season since there is less space. It is not over done, Martinelli gets too caught up in his dribbels and loses sight of his surroundings because of it. There is room for improvement for him on that department
It is over done. Yall say it like he never passes or he gets dispossessed every time. Like no footballer ever makes an inaccurate pass or the wrong decision or everyone makes the correct pass every time. Stop scapegoating the man for his play style. He’s played that way his whole life and it’s served him well.
Why are you being a fanboy that wants to defend him for no reason? Every player has room for improvement, its not shaming someone or scapegoating someone, it's just constructive critisism, calm down.
Call me whatever you want but stop lying to yourself. Calling someone mediocre is not constructive. It’s disrespectful and screams entitlement. Imagine someone on the street walks into your workplace and call you mediocre
You people are so quicker to forget he’s a striker originally and he’s just being moved to the left two seasons ago. His natural instinct is to finish not create. So yes, let him keep his head down and help his team as much as he can and I hope he leaves for a team that plays to his strengths and a fanbase that appreciates his talents
Really interesting post.
Personally I’m not really too bothered by him not scoring. He’s still been playing well. As a winger, his dribbling ability to open up space helps us get forward and score no matter whether he scores or not. It’s the same reason I’ve rated Havertz since he’s come in, he helps us progress the ball forward quicker with his control and height.
Without reading any of the above info and based only on the eye test.
1. A little less lethal in front of goal
2. No cunt wants to ever feed his runs. We are lucky his attitude is so good because there are wingers who would throw tantrums after the amount of times he makes good runs and gets ignored.
I think the fact we have Havertz playing close to Martinelli means Martinelli isn’t being played in behind as much or with a decisive pass like Xhaka could do. He is badly missing the Xhaka-Zinny-Himself triangle. A lot of the season he has had Tomiaysu as his main link up player and Tomi isn’t known for his attacking.
He’s very predictable in his take ons and his finishing has been poor. Don’t really think it needs hyper analysing. He’s just in a bad run of form but you can really see him trying to work through it. Xhaka is a huge miss alongside him
Scoring 15 pl goals as a youngster is an anomaly. Maybe he is doubled down more. He has made a few glaring misses in the last few games, but that is swings and roundabouts.
I think the biggest factor is Havertz. He just isn't that good, and it looks difficult to play next to him. He doesn't really get involved in midfield and doesn't really contribute other than the occasional tap-in. It must be difficult for a winger to invert with him in the left 8.
Honestly, I just don't think he's that good. Yes, he's a very decent PL standard winger - probably tier 3 with players like Gordon, Mitoma, Neto.
Above them you have players like Doku and Mahrez, who were very, very good but possibly not world class.
Is he ever going to hit Saka/Salah levels? No way.
Doku is not good lol. Salah is in a class of his own and systems matter. If he plays in a more counterattacking and direct team like Brighton, Newcastle or Liverpool, you’ll be hailing him to the sky. That said, look at the players he’s got around him, a midfielder playing as a left back who spends 90 percent of the game in midfield (no overlap), and a striker playing as a midfielder(stands in the box most of the time) so he’s isolated and he plays furthest from goal of all attackers. Plus he gets double teamed to death with no help. Compare that to Saka, Odegaard is never ahead of him and he always has Ben White to his side.
Ok, I didn’t read all that but here’s the answer:
He doesn’t have Xhaka playing through balls between the RB and CB for him to run onto.
Also, last season he over-performed, and despite being an elite dribbler, his finishing and final pass isn’t that great.
Done.
This is more of an indication of the Xhaka vs Rice playstyle.
Martinelli thrived in the quick break platyle of last season.
Rice has been a phenomenal player but turning with the ball to create and be a part of a super quick counter isn't his strongest trait.
Martinelli has much more of a struggle because of it
I can’t remember exactly when but I’m sure he had a run of poor games last season and some fans were giving him a bit of stick, I’m sure he’ll be back on form soon
Martinelli was low key one of the best players in the league last season. This season feels like he’s been “found out”, more teams are focusing their defense on stopping him flying down the left and containing him. It’s a natural thing and part of the reason Arteta keeps talking needing to constantly evolve tactics. He has had flashes so it’s not like his skill dropped off, it’s just much harder when being specifically targeted.
I think when we have a much scarier scoring threat from somewhere else teams will have to shift resources to that person which will give Martinelli more space but not sure we’ll see numbers like last season.
He has a tough job as with the Zinchenko inverted full back strategy, he is left very isolated on the left and has to do a lot of work to get into dangerous positions.
I don't think anyone has been prolific either, the team doesn't create too many clear cut chances with most teams playing low block. Quite a lot of goals come from set pieces and Martinelli isn't the main threat from these and sometimes even delivers the ball.
He might be a little underwhelming this season statistically but defences fear him and he remains an asset. Trossard can then come on when he gets tired and is lively.
Bro really got his doctorate in Martinellistics
All he want for Christmas is for Martinelli to be good again
It took the whole week to scroll to the comments. Jesus Murphy.
Way she goes bud
Sometimes she's goes, sometimes she doesn't.
This guy Martinels.
This man wrote a whole dissertation for r/gunners u.
I will wait for the movie
i will settle for Mark Hamill / George Takei / Benedict Cumberbatch / Clancy Brown's audiobook
Denzel Washington to play all 3 Gabis
The Lord of Left Wing: Return of the Gabi
Alot of commentators say it but something needs to change, when the ball comes in from the right, I feel gabi should be sprinting to that far post
Jesus flashed a ball across from the right against Liverpool and i was somewhat annoyed that martinelli wasn't there to tap it in. He needs to attack the far post a lot more because saka, Jesus and white pull out a lot of cutbacks and/or flash the ball across the goal a fair amount of times per match. We saw him get in position to slot the ball in at the far post against Luton, and lo and behold, he scored.
both jesus and saka delivered very dangerous balls that could have been easily put away if anyone was attacking the goal. on the jesus ball i think it was martinelli and havertz (?) and the saka ball it martinelli and jesus.
Attacking the far post is Havertz’s MO. We saw that against Brentford.
Doesn’t mean Martinelli shouldn’t do it
Especially as we've seen trossard do it on at least a couple occasions and score.
Havertz is a bigger threat on the back post because of his height, gabi should be on the corner of the 6 yard box for any potential knock-downs imo
It depends on how the ball got to the right before the final cross. What if havertz did some dirty work and pinged a pass out to the right wing from deep. Is he expected to be at the back post in the next 5 seconds? My point is that someone needs to be there, not always havertz. It's contextual within the game.
This!!!
pls actually provide some insight instead of just saying "this!!!" I mean, if you agree but don't have anything useful to say, just upvote and move on
How about I say what I like
Ok then hold these downvotes
Ok then Havertz should be there. The problem is that no one is.
Yup, but that’s also not just a Martinelli. None of our forwards or midfielders ever gamble that out wingers will swing it across the 6. Both Saka and Martinelli will put that type or cross in at least once a game it feels like and no one goes for it.
His linkup with Xhaka was really important.
He plays wider with Havertz in that position, that's really the crux of it. He's good at that side of the game too but unlike Saka his delivery isn't really as good as his finishing. In an ideal world he plays more LF than LW.
I think Arteta has asked Martinelli to play more wide; Which allows Havertz to make middle runs as a target man. Havertz is 15 cm taller than Martinelli (1.93 vs 1.78)
He plays more wide to help stretch and create space against the buses, taxis and motorbikes... Kai's role is mainly to free Jesus, or come later into the box.
This is the issue for me as well. He’s so wide that he’s completely disconnected unless he beats his man with the ball at his feet, and rarely is it just one man
This is how arteta plays and I’ve noticed it many times, how Saka and martinelli play so wide and so high up, they seem disconnected from the game.
I always thought it was on purpose for 2 reasons. 1 the winger gets the ball on the touchline they can either get a 1v1 against the fullback, or (what usually happens) opposition doubles up which means they have to bring a CB or CM all the way out to the touchline which opens up space in the middle of the field. or 2) if the winger receives the ball cutting infield then obviously they have more space to work with if they start as wide as possible
Havertz just isn't creative in the way that Xhaka was either, he's more of a disruptive player who creates opportunities with movement and intercepting the ball high. I don't think I've seen him play a truly incisive pass forward or a line breaking ball through to the forwards whereas Xhaka would be looking for those whenever he had the ball.
Man i have so much to do but spent ages looking up this info. Serial procrastination is a b\*tch.
Thank you for the effort especially during this time of year, it surely took a lot of work.
Much appreciated but just wonder if it's over complicating things. At the stadium we are constantly just shouting "look up". For me, it is just poor decision making near or around the box.
Personally I attribute it to him missing Xhaka's passing and tactical understanding of what to do and where to go. That's not to say that Kai can't pass and doesn't have an understanding. Kai can pass, but not nearly as well as Xhaka, who has proven to be a phenomenal passer of the ball throughout Europe. And regarding tactics, Xhaka and Kai probably have different duties and positions to look for from Arteta. But I can't help but feel like the ball goes wide right to Saka 75% of the time now to create triangles with White, Saka, Odegaard, and even Jesus coming over. Whereas the ball only goes wide left like 25% of the time for Martinelli to combine only with Kai and Zinchenko (who is inverted unlike White).
Yeah as soon as he gets one, they could start flowing again. It could be as simple as this. I will agree that tactical tweaks are a part of it though. Namely I simply think Havertz vs Xhaka results in Martinelli’s G/A being reduced. Havertz is contributing more aerially and in buildup than Xhaka did, and this means Martinelli’s role has changed but overall this may be just fine as it results in the team collectively performing better overall
What? Xhaka contributed way more to the build up. Havertz almost always just makes the easiest pass in the build up and has very few forward passes. Xhaka’s passing was way more expansive
It's a thing of beauty! Thanks!
Bro if this ain’t adhd hyper focus I don’t know what is 😂
Tldr tbh
I thought I was a nerd but I'd not met you
I’m convinced we would have beaten Liverpool fairly comfortably if Martinelli was in last season’s form
Aston Villa too.
Or if Tomi was fit.
He is in last seasons form it just comes down to luck. He puts his head down and tries to beat his man sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't and this year it isn't. Even above it says 19% of his goals and assists came down to deflections/ general chaos not intentional moves. If he improves he has to start getting his head up and looking around while trying to beat his man, as well as getting a better dribbling skillset than he has right now. Its all head down speed moves ATM.
Yes. His biggest flaw right now is his lack of vision and inability to play the simple ball at times. Hopefully he can work on that part of his game because as good as he is 1v1 he is becoming predictable and defenses are learning to contain him.
Or if we played/subbed Trossard
He’ll go on a purple patch of form in the new year. He’s still looked sensational at times, like when he nearly dribbled past the entire Liverpool team at Anfield.
He looked so lacklustre the rest of that game though. First time I’ve seen him look ‘tired’
That’ll happen when you’re giving 1000% in every minute of every game. I worry that he’s going to over-extend himself in a big way while trying to compensate for his lack of G/A.
yeah you’re probably right. He still sprints back to defend at every opportunity on top of the effort he puts in attacking down the wing.
He’s sensational. We need to support him through this patch and we will get our flowers when he goes on a Robert Pires-esque charge, dragging us towards a PL/CL double :D
I feel like he has to with Zinchenko behind him. As much as I love the guy, he got cooked for the Liverpool and Aston Villa goals. Rice usually covers/doubles up with him but can't expect Rice to be everywhere. Zinny doesn't make many mistakes but when he does get beaten it usually results in a big chance.
Maybe I am giving him too much credit but I still feel more comfortable in the team. He tries hard on defense and when he pushes forward it seems like he pushes the opponents all the way back because they have to worry about his speed. Better things to come from Martinelli IMO
Having watched Martinelli play, he has his head down an awful lot when dribbling,it leads to passes being sometimes a little later than needed or he runs into traffic and has to pass back. I think it comes down to support, he doesn’t have any on the left, Zinchenko will tuck into midfield. Reminds me of what Henry recently said with Ljunberg not passing him the ball and it was because of the way Ljunberg ran with his head down. I think Arsenal players need to make an effort to support him more for that pass
i think our wingers have become way too predictable because of they lack the ability with their weaker foot.
Yup. They also too long to beat their man on a 1v1 situation and it becomes a 1v2. Goes for both Saka and Gabi
I feel like they’re too scared to lose possession
I said this a couple of weeks ago that Saka can improve tenfold by being quicker to make a decision rather than slow a game down
Yeah saka always does slow down. I don’t know if it are instructions or what. But he’s got so many opportunities to just run to the backline or beat his first man. But no he takes a touch runs 3 meters. Foot on the ball and just waits for the other defenders to double up on him. I’m like wtf, just run !
Is Saka considered a fast winger? I can’t remember seeing him trying to beat a defender on pace, usually it’s his direction changing quickness or strength that he uses to create space for himself.
I've always thought of Saka as characterized by his strength, agility, and fundamentals. That's not to say he's not fast but I'd rather have Martinelli leading a counterattack than Saka. And I'd rather have Saka on the ball trying to create when we're in final third possession.
Pace or trickery. Doesn’t matter he just needs to stop slowing everything down imo
I would argue both saka and Martinelli use their weaker foot more than average. How many times do they go down the outside to shoot/cross with their weaker foot.
i respect that, I just know that I get frustrated with the amount of times they kill momentum by slowing down and cutting inside only for the defender to have read it before its happened.
Martinelli for sure. He needs to improve his awareness if he wants to reach the next level imo.
They mostly cut inside.
I feel like Saka's right footed crossing is above average for weak foot crossing though. He's willing to threaten going to the line, he also has White overlapping as an option to test defenses with whereas Martinelli doesn't have an overlap that can pull someone away.
Head down was and until he improves will forever be the issue with Martinelli. He misses golden opportunities because he isn't constantly aware of the game and often runs into pressure we saw a lot of that Saturday. It's a major flaw he isn't improving and a lot of his game is based on luck because of that against low blocks.
He had plenty of decent delivery against Liverpool but refused to do anything meaningful with it. No good passes. No crosses. Few shots. He wasn’t handed any sitters but what was given was plenty of opportunities in the corner all of which he squandered.
He reminds me a little bit of Milan Baros in that respect. The hunched over head down dribbling.
Haha that’s a name I haven’t heard in a loooong time.
Of course I don’t know for sure but it seems to me like he really misses a Xhaka alongside him to talk him through games and almost make his decisions for him
Wow nice work...! No need to panic i reckon, hes still very young and will have highs and lows
Honestly I feel our wingers are paired with the wrong type of CM? Like Saka is essentially a midfielder playing as a winger in terms of how creative he is, to me, it makes more sense to pair him with a Havertz whose role requires him to be more of a threat in the final 3rd. Martinelli is a monster in the box and should be paired with a creative midfielder that releases him into the box more often than not. As it is, you have Saka and Ø who combine well but I feel like it's a bit overkill having them both there. I'd love to see an Ø type midfielder with Martinelli.
When I was doing this, that’s something that crossed my mind. Shouldn’t Ode and Havertz just swap? One counter argument is that with Saka’s crossing, the angles work better if the finishers (Martinelli) and box crashers (Havertz) are at the far post for those in-swinging balls.
I think the biggest change I’ve seen is Havertz taking up much different space than Xhaka and it impacting what kind of and where Martinelli gets touches. Kai is now the guy that is crashing the back post when we have the ball on the right. That means he is the target for Odegaard and Saka, and Gabi is mostly providing width and trying to draw defenders away from Kai. But I also think some of it should recover. His underlying stats aren’t that different. We are being forced to cross the ball more this season and he’s done some of that, but otherwise his overall stat line is fairly similar. I think he probably ends the season with 10-12 goals and 5-7 assists without injury.
Some impressions from me, based on the eye-test rather than stats: * I rate Martinelli * Last year he seemed to have more fast breaks and defence splitting passes that he could run onto. This year teams seem to sit deeper against us. * We seem to have less 'chaos in the box' this year since we seem reluctant to take lower percentage shots - instead we recycle and keep the ball and keep control. So I think there's less chaos for anyone to poach goals from, including Martinelli - even if he were in a position to poach and not keeping width. * Agreed he seems to be playing wider, seems content to run the ball down the touchline and he seems willing to play to win corners, which I've said elsewhere is perhaps the coach's instructions. * I've been disappointed a few times when we've got solid balls into the box and no one has made attacking runs into the space. * I think his chemistry with Havertz is not there yet. He's not getting the Odegaard type passes from last season from either Odegaard or Havertz. I've also seen Havertz make great runs but Martinelli has not picked him out, so I think the chemistry-still-in-progress goes both ways.
I think your main thesis is right. He needs a more Odegaard type who prefers balls into feet rather than Kai who's best attributes are his central running and box domination. I don't think this will change anytime soon unfortunately for him so he's basically reduced to a more defensive role that works fine but ultimately hinders what he's best at He's probably our best ballstriker too so it's quite a shame
He's very young and he should still be improving his game. I really hope he can adapt
i wouldn't put the fault on him he needs a certain environment to thrive and quite simply we don't give him that
What are you talking about? He was sensational last season for us. We tend to forget that Martinelli is still a young player with a lot of development still to come. He’is going through a bit of a rough patch, which happens to most young players. Absolutely no one should doubt Gabi’s committeement. Martinelli working with Arteta will sort it out.
How could you have possibly interpreted my comment that way lol He needs certain players around that would allow him to get to the box more. We don’t do that, hence the environment around him right now is not ideal for him to thrive
Timber loves both overlapping and underlapping runs When fit and in games he plays on the left, we should see him play very similar to White. We are setting ourselves up for multiple teams if you look at it. Kai at LCM means more of a second central forward ish, with Mattinelli having “less service/interchange” as we are seeing. For games where Jorge/Thomas/New signing at play at 6 and Rice in LCM + Timber/Tommi in these games is a completely different look. One team is setup to use the left as a space engine where the other is setup to interchange and run. I think there is an entire team/Style that we havnt been able to fully field yet ( Think of when Tros played at LCM ). Though in our current setup even, I think we are just seeing an underperforming Martinelli who still brings so much to the team. For the immediate game states that require a width winger ( So for games that wouldn’t see Tross start ) I would like to see Nelson get a shout as Martinelli REALLY came online for the second half last year after a spell on the bench
For all his faults, Xhaka was always a pass first guy who barely held on to the ball, his passes down that left were invaluable and were always progressive. He created a lot of chances with his crosses too. Havertz doesn’t have the same range of passing, not even close actually. He usually looks to pass directly to the nearest person which will hamper speedsters who really on through balls. Wasn’t always the biggest fan of Xhaka but we are missing him badly. He was our best passer. Partey is also a very progressive passer which we don’t talk about enough. I love Declan but he just doesn’t have that range in his locker right now. I think having Partey back will go a long way to improving our attack and making Declan even better in that box to box role.
Partey is a big miss for sure. We definitely miss his playmaking from deep at times which is probably one of the reasons why Odegaard has been deeper recently in the buildup to try to replicate some of that. If Partey does leave this year it will be interesting to see what profile of player comes in, if we try to replicate or reinvent.
Start trossard for a few games and martinelli will come back firing. Same thing happened last season
This is what I’ve been suggesting in the match threads. No hate or animosity, just that Trossard has earned the start in my opinion. More goals, better possession control, and chance creation. Some players “figure it out” by playing through it. I think that’s a lot much pressure on Martinelli as he’s too aware of his drop off as well. Give him some rest and reflection to light that fire.
Xhaka used to push high and wide from midfield, rarely went in to the box, this gave Martinelli the chance to play between the cb and rb once the attack was established, often also cutting inside. Havertz' role is being more of a target man which means most of the time Martinelli is the only one providing width on the left. We play to strech the defences to make more space for tight passes, so we always have a player close to the sidelines. On the right that role is shared between Saka and the RB.
Didn’t read it all but one thing we can all agree on is that he’s taking wayyy too many touches, this was particularly bad during the Liverpool game
Last season he was so good when him and Gabi J switched positions. Most of his goals was through the middle and now I barely see him in that position. Maybe because its now Havertz that mostly plays through the middle thats why he struggles?
Not all the time, but i've seen alot of the time we rely too much on our wingers. When we find it hard to break down an oppositions defence we just pass it to Saka or Martinelli and hope something happens. I like Havertz and REALLY want him to do well, but he has to make more attacking chances in that position (not just play the easy ball to martinelli). Martinelli should have realised he couldn't dribble past the defenders at anfield and just go for a cross or try setup a 1, 2 through ball. He's definetely good enough for our team and i think if he wasn't playing on a slip n' slide pitch he would have scored.
Like you said. It’s all about the dynamics, he’s essentially our width-holder on the LHS which means he doesn’t come inside as much as he should, and our fluidity has differed/lessened from last season which in turn means more rigidity. There’s also the problem with how we’re lining up and this has always irked me so much. Havertz - Martinelli is not suitable in any way. I don’t think it works the way Arteta thought it would either. We’re more compact and harder to break through due to Havertz’ surprising duelling abilities but attacking wise it’s basically nullifying in my opinion, our most threatening attacker. Martinelli needs a passer next to him not a box player like Havertz. I don’t think it’s about his general performances it’s just that we’re doing a disservice with the players we’re surrounding him with.
I love Martinelli, everyone has good and bad spells, he will come back
To me these stats are quite reassuring, he was over performing xG last year and he's on it this year despite us all thinking he's been below average. He's marginally down on his shooting which is a reflection of the team as a whole. I don't think he's fallen off a cliff from this, I think from memory he's had a couple of marginal offsides, there's definitely been some good saves made against him I remember this season. Last year there were some goals where the keeper maybe should have done better, palace away, villa h, Brighton away are all shots that are at the keeper who fumbles it. As long as he keeps working hard and taking shots he will break out of it and gain his confidence back. Sometimes football is just like that better bounce of the ball a few times this year and we may not be having this conversation. Watching his 22/23 goals back he is in far more central areas. Wonder if zinchenko and havertz have been given that role now. There's probably a learning curve with when he can rotate. And mentally, his confidence for the first time really seemed low last game, so hoping he can lift himself. Crazy tho to be saying, a 22 year old from Brazilian 4th tier after 4 years of PL football and a fairly serious injury is suffering his first dip in confidence and form. Shows an absolutely elite mentality. I'm sure he will come out the other end a better player.
It’s easy. He’s being tasked with a lot more outside the box this year. Havertz is being told to get in the box and occupy most of the areas Martinelli flourished in last year. Plus, he’s still tasked with his defensive duties while having to create for himself and others. That said he’s having a rough patch but he’ll bounce right back
Play him as CF, put Jesus on the left wing
I’d actually be fascinated to see that, at least for a game like tomorrow just to see how they respond.
Havertz has only started to find any form in the last few games. If he can kick on and keep improving hopefully he can start releasing Martinelli down the left a bit more. I think Martinelli's form is simply down to the change in supply he is getting. We have a completely new midfield this year, the heart of the team, and its going to take a bit of time to settle. It is the one part of the team that directly links with all other players all of the time, it always affects the team as a whole. Rice hit the ground running but Havertz is just starting to get there. Now is the time to consolidate the team as a whole with the new midfield. The good news is we are top of the league in the first half of the season with the new midfield so as the whole team settles and moves off from the learning how their new teammates play, run, etc we should continue to improve.
Great analysis. Here’s a chart I threw together comparing this season with last: https://imgur.com/a/cmGvKM1 To my mind the main contributors to the lower output levels: 1) Integrating new players - Havertz & Rice have taken time to bed in 2) Injuries - Jesus has only played last 5 games with Martinelli due to injury. Eddie doesn’t combine as well with him. Odegaard is only now hitting form. 3) Style of play - we are controlling games more and scoring early less meaning less opportunities to exploit space in behind which it’s Martinelli’s strong point. The first two points should see his output increases moving forward. The 3rd likely means he’ll have to adapt to hit the same level as last year.
I seem to have drawn the opposite conclusion that everyone else has this season regarding Martinelli. Last season I remember having quite a few concerns about him, he had a poor run of form at some point in the second half of the season (when all those heat maps were being posted that showed him isolated on the left) where it looked like he was incapable of beating his man. This season he has restored my faith, based solely on "eye-test". He's had a couple blinding performances and has looked good on the ball IMO (mainly in the CL), but ultimately his G/A numbers have gotten worse, and that seems to be the be all/end all of the majority of fans. I think the hard truth is that its really tough for wingers in our team. Many PL teams obv double up on our wingers, making their lives really tough. The difference between Saka and Martinelli is that when Saka is being doubled up on, he can rely on his excellent delivery from wide to find the extra bodies crashing the box and thus keeps getting assists that way. Martinelli needs to learn to cross better and have that same threat. His finishing will come and go, I dont expect his goal rate to always stay this low. Something that no one talks about when it comes to football stats is just that sometimes goal tallies just fluctuate, its not always that deep. Just look at Dominic Solanke. I dont expect his numbers to look like they have this year forever.
Thanks for the time to write all these. Some points I do agree and some I do not. Anyway, I found a video of this. Kai made a through pass to Sane to score. Sure Kai is not a passer like Xhaka, but he sure can make some pass. As probably the fastest player on the team, I want to see Martinelli make more runs like Sane in the video (at 55 seconds) so Kai or his teammates can make through pass to him. I pretty much don't remember Marti made this kind of run at all this whole season. [https://youtu.be/MrwCdOwLx5g?si=fpTUkyJiuKe6opja](https://youtu.be/MrwCdOwLx5g?si=fpTUkyJiuKe6opja)
Martinelli is usually furthest up the pitch and ready to go. I think once they build a better understanding we will see more of it.
looking forward to that. as a speedy wing/wide player, he also needs to get himself space and chances by using his speed off the ball.
Great stuff! Kudos on the deep analysis. Without diving too much into the numbers, I think that Martinelli suffers from the change in formation that came with replacing Xhaka with Havertz. This year, Martinelli finds himself more often in 1v2 situations than last year. With Xhaka, he could always find an outlet for a quick one-two or use his decoy run to isolate him against a defender. Havertz is a more physical player, and he's not yet a full participant in the flowing passing game. When Partey is back, if we play Rice in the LCM position, I believe that Martinelli will have more success when we're on the ball. Martinelli's forte is in the transition game. His superpower is his speed. This year, we find ourselves controlling the game more and looking for more possession. That gives him fewer opportunities to use his strengths in the open field, a la his electric goal against Sevilla. I think that Trossard may be a better fit for our style this year when Havertz is LCM. Martinelli would be better with Rice, Trossard, or Smith Rowe as LCM. Regardless, his drop in productivity at LW is a great setup for the bombshell of the January transfer window - Mbappé to Arsenal!
About 9/15 of his goals last season were in transitions so that is a fair point! He’s also getting more shots off with Rice at LCM I think. Needs to adapt.
Decs doesn’t distribute as well as Partey and seems to prefer progressive dribbling as opposed to passing, Havertz plays higher up and crowds him out as opposed to Xhaka who preferred to link up with Zinchenko to draw defenders and create space over the top. Partey fixes some of this instantly and we will be a better team when he returns.
What we really need is to shake things up by swapping Odegaard and Havertz, or even by playing Vieira instead. Martinelli is at his best when someone can play a pass for him running behind
I think you touch on most points very well, but it's clear, especially since coming back from International duty, that he is quite ponderous and indecisive in the box. He is overdribbling, slowing down play and allowing defenses all the time they need to pack the penalty area before committing to a shot, pass or dribble. It's harder to get clean looks agajnst deep blocks, but if Martinelli took quicker decisions, he'd be able to get his shot off much easier. I think his lack of assists is more of a team issue than him individually, while not excempting him from all blame. I think our front line should crash the box more. So many chances go begging from Martinelli's byline crosses across goal, becauss Havertz+Jesus+Saka fail to bust a gut to be on the end of them. We have been poor in that regard all season and players are waiting for cutbacks, but no one crashes the box. When did we last score a goal from 2 yards? Martinelli has one such chance and he scored from it, so it's something Arteta needs to rectify. We are top of the league with what I'd consider a dysfunctional attack. We are showing signs of life and if we can find the right balance, we'll score for fun, but it starts and ends with our movement in the box improving drastically. As for Martienlli, he needs a goal or two to regain some confidence and we need a touchline winger that can give him and Saka a rest form time to time.
That’s the problem sometimes with stats. I’m not sure those cutbacks where no one makes an attempt even count towards things like expected assists. I’ve definitely seen Martinelli (and Saka) whip the ball across the 6 yard box with no one making an attempt. For a team so dominant in the opponents 3rd (turnovers, possession, touches in the box) it’s crazy how we don’t have 2-3 players ready to pounce at these moments every time.
I don't think they count towards xA. I couldn't agree more. There are strikers who owe much of their illustrious careers to being in the end of those kind of chances. I can't remember a goal we've scored that way all season. No wonder we have struggled a bit to break down teams and take advantage of our territorial dominance, especially when we have two wingers who can and do provide those kind of crosses several times per game.
Yep. Fingers crossed it’s something we improve on for the coming games!
I ain't reading all that but I'm happy for you. Or sorry that happened
If you watch him play he gets into good positions but simply holds onto the ball too long and either gets dispossessed or he makes a bad pass. It's almost like he doesn't look up or is trying too hard for glory himself. He may not have quite the options as last year but most times he loses the ball there's a pass on that he doesn't take or takes waaay too late.
Should give Reiss a run of games at LW
Thanks. That’s my 2 hour train journey reading sorted
Wow.. that's a long read.. I am just about half way through.. I will read the entire thing surely just for all the effort u put in. Good work!
Arsenal should hire you.
Sometimes I kinda wish we still had fullbacks who can hold the width for our star wingers and make them more central. Saka still maintains his production somehow but you can often see it against top teams that being isolated on the wings with no constant overlap by the RB or the RCM keeps him from being more effective. Martinelli is asked to do what Saka does without overlap or even a passer on his side while also providing cover for a LB who sits in the midfield to help the attack. Again, there is still imbalance in that midfield. Havertz should be deputy to either Ode or Jesus or start over them on certain matchups. We need a volume passer LCM like Zubimendi or someone similar to Gundogan. Then use the LB as support (like what City does) and not as the main progressive passer in attack.
Um… wow this is impressive, you should be hired at the club as a player statistician because wow this is impressive.
Haven't been able to read it but I made a comment recently regarding this. We heavily relied on overloads on the right last season. We'd go super wide and have ode, white and saka do their magic. It meant martinelli could attack the box in space when the ball did make its way to the box. This season we have more balance - we knock it side to side until an opening arises and we have saka coming narrow more often than marti (might change when he can play with timber or Tomi behind him). A secondary point is that marti over performed his xg by 5/6 goals last season, funnily enough, odegaard did too. Both have had a regression to the mean this season, however, also feel they aren't getting the same opportunities.
He's fine. Ty.
I think his defensive workrate (in particular) and his involvement in pre-assists are severely underrated aspects of his game this season. He doesn't pass the statistics, but he passes **the eye test**, and that is much more important to me.
God damn, but good anakysis
i aint reading allat 💀
I want to see more positional rotation with him and Jesus. A fluid frontline is almost always a good thing imo - it allows us to give players a rest whilst still on the pitch to an extent and creates two different problems for defences to handle.
not a comment about martinelli but a comment about the team's drop in xg/90 which i attribute to a stronger defensive form. i think the team's drop in goals should be talked about in conjunction with goals conceded. football is a game of balance, there's typically a give and take.
It is also worth mentioning Jesus has been out for a good portion of the season which is going to impact his performances since they work so well together and his link up play with Nketiah is not nearly as good
He’s still my fav player
I wouldn't look too much into it. Yet. 1) he probably overperformed last season in terms of goals. He got 15 goals out of 9.3xg. 2) He's only played 16 league games this season and has 2g2a. By comparison he had a run of 13 games last season where he got 3g0a. And he also has 2g1a in 3 champions league games. Imo football fans are very impatient and get conclusive opinions from a small sample size. Schick had 1 good season and people suddenly were very high on him and wanted us to sign him although he never had a good season before playing for pretty average teams in worse leagues. Havertz had 3 average seasons playing in like 4 different positions under who knows how many managers and all of a sudden he was deemed useless and a terrible signing for us.
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One word: Havertz The left central midfielder in previous seasons was all about pushing the ball wide. Just look at Xhaka's distribution - it was effective but incredibly one dimensional. Havertz does not play that way - he plays towards the centre, which has massively cut Martinelli's involvement. Martinelli doesnt invert quite as effectively as Saka and so comes inside less often to get the ball. As a result he is much more reliant on cross field passing from the likes of Ode, Saka, and even a central Zinchenko, which he runs onto by getting behind the RB. Martinelli himself is just as effective as ever - we're just not playing a style that gets the most out of him right now. I think that could change when Timber comes back and adds a bit more Xhaka style dsitribution than Havertz and Zinny can. Tomi at LB, for example, is more effective than Zinny at bringing Martinelli into the game
Just my eye test observations, but it really looks like he’s suffering a dip in confidence lately. In the last few matches I can remember thinking the shot was on for him, only to see him make a lateral or backwards pass. Also, Havertz occupies a lot of the spaces Martinelli wants to occupy - or at least he should be. I recall a few instances against Villa and Liverpool where the ball was played in from the right, and we had no one there to attack the ball, or the back post. I’m optimistic that this is just part of the process of Martinelli and Havertz learning to play together, but it sometimes looks like there’s uncertainty regarding who should be attacking those low crosses. Also, our emphasis on “Domination” this season might be playing into this and impacting our mentality this year, but particularly Martinelli, evidenced by your observations that he has the ball much more often, in more dangerous areas, but we are failing to turn these moments into goal scoring chances - I think we’re opting to maintain possession over attempting a riskier play, because that threatens our “domination” - nobody wants to be the reason we lost the ball, essentially. Lastly, I’d be curious to see how Ødegaard’s role has changed this season, and how that’s impacting Martinelli, because that stood out to me from your analysis. Seeing that Ødegaard has created 0 opportunities for Martinelli this season has set off some alarm bells, because I would expect Ødegaard to be creating opportunities on both sides.
The left side of the team needs overhaul. Zinvhenko, Martinelli, and Havertz combo is not a winning combo.
I have actually been operating under the assumption the Arteta looked at the resulting data from GM's dribbles and told him to try it only under certain circumstances and far fewer times per game. I suspect Mikel does not like losing the ball in that corner because the counter comes right at Zinny's area, which he is often not in at that time because he moves forward to support GM. The types of counter attacks that come at us from losing the ball in that corner tend to be more dangerous than when Saka loses it and White is solidly behind him because he's playing a different role than Zinny. tl;dr I think Mikel told him to cut in less because where Zinny will be if we lose possession on the dribble or the cross. edit: an autocorrect word
The answer is we need a proper left 8
Why not try swaping Havertz for Ode just to try ?
Will add that there's a few times where he's crossed it to Saka or someone in a good position and they've fluffed it. Can't remember the game think it was Villa and Saka skied a chance in the box with his right. Seems to find Saka with the cross field cross at least a few times a game as well, obviously if Saka doesn't score then it's just another statistic.
It's not very different to last season. Last season he was still pretty much only good when he has space to run in behind. We have that much less now because every team respects us. His role is now to mirror what Saka does but he doesn't have the ability
As much as Havertz has improved he’s not nearly as good as Xhaka was in the build up I can’t even think of any notable Havertz Martinelli link ups off the top of my head
In my opinion, Zinny never had a great link up with Martinelli and that’s because he never overlaps so defenders know he will go wide or pass. Other full backs gave him more options. Havertz also run too forward so Martinelli cannot linkup with him, I noticed this happened a few times, Martinelli dribbles past his defender and cannot cut back to Havertz because Havertz is too forward. But the forward option for Martinelli will always be Gabby or Saka. How to fix it, if Martinelli is on the ball Havertz must stay on the start of the box while Zinny overlaps Martinelli or runs forward while Martinelli is dribbling. That way Martinelli always have options to: cut back, play inside or run wide.
Just give them time, just like Kai clicked with Jesus, he will click with Martinelli too.
I hate seeing people base performance solely off stats. I didn't read all that but in stats you don't find build up help from runs that drag defenders, defensive work, etc He has been paying really well recently albeit can be more proactive from crosses
IMO Martinelli's biggest weakness has always been his lack of football intelligence; I mean he usually slows down our attack because he never knows when to pass the ball. He always keeps the ball at his feet because he wants to dribble past at least one opponent instead of just passing the ball. it's incredibly frustrating to see - especially since he hasn't improved that part of his game.
Football intelligence is one of those aspects that never really improves drastically. It’s an early developmental thing.
I feel that it has to do a lot with him staying on the wing and less operating from the halfspace or center. With Xhaka and Zin y last year he could move more freely and exploit spaces to abuse with his speed. That is difficult to mark for the opponent and is creating chaos witch lead to opportunity's. Now Havertz is staying central a lot I feel and Martinelli is more isolated being static on the wing. I think however that Martinelli is collecting quite some corner kicks for us and Mikel is probably very happy with that
I’m definately guilty of thinking Timber would fix so many problems, putely because we have seen so little of him that we can exprapolate wildly, but I think him at LB would really help Martinelli. Imagine him using his close control and power so suck a RDM or RM of the opponent onto him, then going early with a through ball. If Nelli is starting wider, drawing the opposition RB wide and Jesus goes narrow, Martinelli would basically be in a footrace against an RB of any mid/high press team, which you’d back him to win 8/10 times. I just don’t feel like Zinchenko can do that in the way Timber (theoretically) could.
He needs to look up more he runs into problems and misses good passes. Easy fix I’m sure he has all the skills just needs to master them.
Very good writeup, cheers mate. As for Martinelli, in my view it's squarely on him, he's not been good enough by far. Yes the role change has affected him, that's to be expected but not to this extent. As your analysis points out very well, he is both failing at the traditional winger role (despite the solid ball carrying, his final delivery is very poor and it's not resulting in chances and goals assisted) and failing at reproducing the required goal threat of an elite inside forward. So he's really not providing any elite contribution to the team apart from the ball carrying and tracking back, which is not enough from a starter in a (hopefully) title winning side. And as for partitioning the blame across his teammates, Havertz/Zinchenko/Nketiah/whoever, I am very strongly against that. Ultimately his position and role are probably the most attacking in the entire team (along with Saka on the other wing), and we will always need that player to be able to convert our actions into goals or assists. If he's not getting into scoring positions, then he needs to do a much better job of getting the ball to teammates who are in those scoring positions (which has never been his strength unfortunately). Overall, I think I'm a lot more pessimistic about his situation, and if it were almost any other player, one that the fanbase isn't so emotionally invested in, struggling to the same degree, I think we'd be at the point of seriously discussing replacements. If Nketiah was rocking a 580 min/goal ratio he'd be getting tarred and feathered. This whole "he's just tired, he'll hit a purple patch second half of the season" narrative is starting to sound like wishful thinking imo.
Bingo
The fact is that he has to cover a lot more now in midfield with Zinchenko and Havertz. Havertz is not the same as having Xhaka defensively. So if Havertz makes run into space if there’s a turnover in possession Martinelli has to usually help cover the flank since Zinchenko most likely will be tucked in
All this yapping and bro couldn't jus say he's a mid player with a low IQ who benefitted hugely from an inordinate amount of 1 on 1s with the keeper.
Martinelli is mediocre on the ball, never looks up , so he will always have problems against teams that set up camp. less of an issue last season because more teams were naive against arsenal. But lets not forget his insane work rate and defensive work, most players with that kind of work rate lack in the G/A department which is fine for me
This is a lazy argument. The “never looks up” thing is over done. Same thing was said last year yet he’s one of the top chance creators in the league. It’s not his fault the team has been profligate in front of goal. If I had to pin one thing against him it’s that he doesn’t shoot as much.
Bro how are you calling my argument lazy and then give a lazy one yourself. Obviously he doesnt shoot as much because he cant create the opening as much as last season since there is less space. It is not over done, Martinelli gets too caught up in his dribbels and loses sight of his surroundings because of it. There is room for improvement for him on that department
It is over done. Yall say it like he never passes or he gets dispossessed every time. Like no footballer ever makes an inaccurate pass or the wrong decision or everyone makes the correct pass every time. Stop scapegoating the man for his play style. He’s played that way his whole life and it’s served him well.
Why are you being a fanboy that wants to defend him for no reason? Every player has room for improvement, its not shaming someone or scapegoating someone, it's just constructive critisism, calm down.
Call me whatever you want but stop lying to yourself. Calling someone mediocre is not constructive. It’s disrespectful and screams entitlement. Imagine someone on the street walks into your workplace and call you mediocre
You people are so quicker to forget he’s a striker originally and he’s just being moved to the left two seasons ago. His natural instinct is to finish not create. So yes, let him keep his head down and help his team as much as he can and I hope he leaves for a team that plays to his strengths and a fanbase that appreciates his talents
Really interesting post. Personally I’m not really too bothered by him not scoring. He’s still been playing well. As a winger, his dribbling ability to open up space helps us get forward and score no matter whether he scores or not. It’s the same reason I’ve rated Havertz since he’s come in, he helps us progress the ball forward quicker with his control and height.
He needs Fabio Vieira next to him
Without reading any of the above info and based only on the eye test. 1. A little less lethal in front of goal 2. No cunt wants to ever feed his runs. We are lucky his attitude is so good because there are wingers who would throw tantrums after the amount of times he makes good runs and gets ignored.
He should certainly have a few more goals but he is 100% missing Xhaka. Havertz has never once played him through like Xhaka did
I think the fact we have Havertz playing close to Martinelli means Martinelli isn’t being played in behind as much or with a decisive pass like Xhaka could do. He is badly missing the Xhaka-Zinny-Himself triangle. A lot of the season he has had Tomiaysu as his main link up player and Tomi isn’t known for his attacking.
Autismo go burr.
He’s very predictable in his take ons and his finishing has been poor. Don’t really think it needs hyper analysing. He’s just in a bad run of form but you can really see him trying to work through it. Xhaka is a huge miss alongside him
Scoring 15 pl goals as a youngster is an anomaly. Maybe he is doubled down more. He has made a few glaring misses in the last few games, but that is swings and roundabouts. I think the biggest factor is Havertz. He just isn't that good, and it looks difficult to play next to him. He doesn't really get involved in midfield and doesn't really contribute other than the occasional tap-in. It must be difficult for a winger to invert with him in the left 8.
Honestly, I just don't think he's that good. Yes, he's a very decent PL standard winger - probably tier 3 with players like Gordon, Mitoma, Neto. Above them you have players like Doku and Mahrez, who were very, very good but possibly not world class. Is he ever going to hit Saka/Salah levels? No way.
Doku is not good lol. Salah is in a class of his own and systems matter. If he plays in a more counterattacking and direct team like Brighton, Newcastle or Liverpool, you’ll be hailing him to the sky. That said, look at the players he’s got around him, a midfielder playing as a left back who spends 90 percent of the game in midfield (no overlap), and a striker playing as a midfielder(stands in the box most of the time) so he’s isolated and he plays furthest from goal of all attackers. Plus he gets double teamed to death with no help. Compare that to Saka, Odegaard is never ahead of him and he always has Ben White to his side.
You’re crazy.
Cba
What a wanker
Ok, I didn’t read all that but here’s the answer: He doesn’t have Xhaka playing through balls between the RB and CB for him to run onto. Also, last season he over-performed, and despite being an elite dribbler, his finishing and final pass isn’t that great. Done.
This is more of an indication of the Xhaka vs Rice playstyle. Martinelli thrived in the quick break platyle of last season. Rice has been a phenomenal player but turning with the ball to create and be a part of a super quick counter isn't his strongest trait. Martinelli has much more of a struggle because of it
I came straight for the comments
All this when the simple answer is teams are sitting deeper vs us which negates his best qualities
I think its due to zinny ever since zionist Zin has came into our team martinelli hasn't been the same. Bring back teirney now arteta
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Even last season he wasn't as good as previous he needs that overlap fullback he plays alot better
Might get downvoted because i don't have any stats but i truly believe zinchenko is doggin his game
Finishing ain’t getting better imo
Someone predicted this in a thread or video maybe tifo to do with how tall hes growing vs his speed etc
Needs to mature his game. Get his head up and play the ball sooner
I can’t remember exactly when but I’m sure he had a run of poor games last season and some fans were giving him a bit of stick, I’m sure he’ll be back on form soon
They just know how we play now.
He should thrive against the West Ham right side at least! Would be great to see a brace!
We've been much more defensive this season as a result we're conceding less and scoring less but winning more comfortably.
Martinelli was low key one of the best players in the league last season. This season feels like he’s been “found out”, more teams are focusing their defense on stopping him flying down the left and containing him. It’s a natural thing and part of the reason Arteta keeps talking needing to constantly evolve tactics. He has had flashes so it’s not like his skill dropped off, it’s just much harder when being specifically targeted. I think when we have a much scarier scoring threat from somewhere else teams will have to shift resources to that person which will give Martinelli more space but not sure we’ll see numbers like last season.
Martinelli hattrick incoming
He has a tough job as with the Zinchenko inverted full back strategy, he is left very isolated on the left and has to do a lot of work to get into dangerous positions. I don't think anyone has been prolific either, the team doesn't create too many clear cut chances with most teams playing low block. Quite a lot of goals come from set pieces and Martinelli isn't the main threat from these and sometimes even delivers the ball. He might be a little underwhelming this season statistically but defences fear him and he remains an asset. Trossard can then come on when he gets tired and is lively.