In this round of Premier League , Arsenal defeated Liverpool 3-2 at home, ending the embarrassing record of 5 consecutive games not winning. The forward young player Martinelli is one of the biggest contributors to the Gunners in this game.
has mixed reviews of this young player. Some people say that he is talented and has the highest attack ability in the league; some people say that he is mediocre and has a large and unstable performance; some people say that he has no future, only knows how to fight alone, and lacks the ability to read games. The arguments of
are actually not wrong, and they all have their own reasons, but they are somewhat extreme. Combining them together is basically the characteristics of Martinelli. And these characteristics of him are closely related to his growth experience. As for how to evaluate it, facts are better than words: since last season, Martinelli has gradually settled in the team's main position, and his performance this season has made a qualitative leap, and has become the most threatening attack point in the team's frontcourt.
About Martinelli, there are many stories that have gone from little to household name, but many of these stories have gone through China and are no longer in the end, such as his life experience, some growth experiences, and teams that missed him. Now, these stories will be filled.
As we all know, Brazilians generally have long names, and Martinelli is no exception. His full name is "Gabriel Teodoro Martinelli Silva", that is, Gabriel Teodoro Martinelli Silva. Careful people will find clues from their names: Martinelli's name does not seem to be a very typical Brazilian name. This is true, the name Teodoro is present in Italian , Spanish and Portuguese , while Martinelli is a pure Italian surname.
Martinelli's mother's name is Elizabete Silva, she is a pure Brazilian, and her father's name is Joao Martinelli, she does have Italian descent. However, the Martinelli family is not a wealthy immigrant. Instead, they live in the city of Guarulus in , São Paulo, . The city is densely populated but not wealthy, and the Martinelli family lives in one of the poorest areas of the city.
Just like other Brazilian children growing up in slums, Martinelli has been struggling on the court since he was a child. However, Martinelli's parents are somewhat like Chinese parents, and they hope that their children will focus on their studies rather than football. However, their idea is that the Brazilian football is seriously inclined, the huge football population has flooded too many players, and the future prospects are not optimistic. If this concept is placed in China, it should probably be that "the pressure to go to school is too great. The college entrance examination is like a thousand troops crossing a single-plank bridge, so it is better to concentrate on playing football."
However, Martinelli has no interest in the studies his parents expects, and he still focuses on playing football. Of course, Martinelli did not show certain football talent and entered the youth training system of the Brazilian giant Corinthian. However, at that time, he focused on five-a-side football .
The experience of futsal football has left a deep mark on Martinelli's football career. His superb footwork skills, excellent ball-holding ability in a small range, and his passion for one-on-one game style all come from this. To this day, there are still shadows of five-a-side football in some of his running positions and ball handling techniques, such as some ball-steps and pick-up moves.
So those criticisms of "insufficient reading competition ability" and "indulging in singles" are actually mostly related to the futsal football atmosphere on him. For Brazilian players, starting with futsal football and being criticized by fans for being "independent" or "girlfriendly" in professional arenas. From Ronaldo, Neymar to Coutinho , they have had similar experiences and experiences.
According to ESPN, Martinelli's first game was in the 2010 five-a-side game for Corinthian U9. Since then, his football talent has been fully activated, scoring an astonishing 122 goals in the year.
Corinthian's youth training coach also discovered this promising supernova, so he recruited him into the 11-a-side football team.According to ESPN data, Martinelli began to take into account both 5-a-side football and 11-a-side football matches after that. When playing for the U11 echelon, he played in a total of 20 games and scored 11 goals. Since 2012, Martinelli has shifted his focus to the 11-a-side football match. Until 2014, he scored a total of 48 goals in the U11, U13 and U15 teams, with a total of 202 goals. The statistics given by
ESPN are a bit strange. Perhaps the other numbers listed in their total goals are all from the five-a-side game. Global Sports gave a number of 73 goals in 139 games, which has also been widely cited. But compared with the official website of the São Paulo State Football Association, there are accurate numbers on the scorer list. It is worth mentioning that when checking the relevant information, you can see that Rodrigo, a player born in the same year as Martinelli and is now famous in Europe, with a similar growth trajectory. The fate of the two began to cross in 2011:
In 2011, in the U11 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli scored 12 goals and tied for the bronze boots of the game, and Rodrigo scored 7 goals. The two met in the final this year. Gabriel started for Corinthian, while Rodrigo sat on the bench of Santos , but in the end, Santos defeated Corinthian 3-2 and won the championship.
2012, also in the U11 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli scored 15 goals and became the silver boot of the game, while Rodrigo became the golden boot with 20 goals. This year, Corinthian fell to the quarterfinals, and Santos reached the final again. Rodrigo scored a goal in the final, helping the team win 2-0 and complete the defending title.
In 2013, neither of them appeared on the scorer list of the São Paulo State Tournament.
In 2014, in the U13 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli scored only 5 goals, while Rodrigo scored 20 goals, helping Santos U13 win the cup.
However, Martinelli is already famous, and many European giants have focused on him, including Red Devils Manchester United. Whether he has declined in data this year or was favored by Manchester United, it is related to his parents' relocation to Itu Town. 13-year-old Martinelli also ushered in his first "transfer" in his life, and he joined the youth training echelon of Itu'ano, a local club in Itu Town.
Speaking of this, Martinelli said: "This is very difficult for me, because Corinthian was really my life at that time, and because we moved, I also left my friends at school. I learned that I cried for a long time when I was about to move. It was too difficult for me who was so young, but the final result was really good."
This club, although the first team hovered in the Batin League, has been able to stabilize in the top league of São Paulo State, and won the São Paulo State championship for the second time in decades in team history in 2014, and the echelon construction has been stable. And when we go to Manchester United for a trial, it is precisely because Ituano has related cooperation with Manchester United. In the next few years, Martinelli improved himself step by step in this small club, while not giving up on pursuing a higher platform.
Recalling that time later, Martinelli said: "In fact, when I was 13, 14, 15 and 16, I had four different trials at Manchester United. It was a club training base in Manchester, where I played in the same age group with Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams . I met first-team players like Zlatan (Ibrahimovic), Paul Pogba , Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra . However, They never said they wanted to sign me. But it gave me a preliminary understanding and made it easier for me to adapt because I felt the atmosphere of English football back then. Even after those (no more than) trials, I always believed in myself. My mind kept thinking, 'I can do it'."
At the same time, as the most talented people in this group of new players, his conversation with Rodrigo did not stop:
In 2015, in the U15 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli scored 5 goals and Rodrigo scored 9 goals.
In 2016, in the U15 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli recovered significantly in form and scored 15 goals, and Rodrigo scored 18 goals, who helped the team reach the finals.
In 2017, in the U17 League of Sao Paulo, Martinelli scored 17 goals and Rodrigo scored 24 goals to tie for the Silver Boots in the match.
It was also in 2017 that Martinelli signed his first professional contract with Ituano's first team.
In 2018, Martinelli was promoted to the first team, completing his professional debut at the age of 16 and 9 months, and became the youngest player in the history of the club. This year he also took into account Ituano's U17 matches. He scored 22 goals in the U17 League in the São Paulo State, and Rodrigo has already begun to compete in the Brazilian League this year.
In 2019, Martinelli's career ushered in leaps and bound for leaps and bound for the second place in the scorer list in 2019. In the National League, he helped the team complete the upgrade.
It was also in this year that Arsenal scout Everton Gushiken reported Martinelli's information to Francis Cagigao, then head of international scouting. Arsenal is considering inviting Martinelli to try out, but Barcelona has made an invitation faster, allowing the Brazilian young player to try out for 15 days in La Macia. However, like Manchester United, they did not offer signing offers. Because he was unable to invite a trial, Francis Cagigao flew to Brazil to watch Martinelli's performance in the Sao Paulo Youth Cup. Another Arsenal scout, Jonathan Vidalle, was also often visited.
Due to the lack of data analysis for the fourth-level Brazil league, Arsenal needs to make judgments based on intuition and experience, and Martinelli also scored 6 goals in the São Paulo Youth Cup. Eventually, Arsenal brought him to England for £6 million. It was also in this year that Rodrigo, who had a similar career trajectory to his country, also went to Europa to join Real Madrid . Everyone is basically familiar with the stories behind
, but in fact, Martinelli's life after joining Arsenal was far from smooth sailing. When talking about his first arrival in London, he said: "When I first signed with Arsenal, Unai Emery was the head coach. I signed with the team as an U23 player at the time, but I had to train with the first team. Then I participated in the team's preseason, and no U23 team played again.
"I know the game in England is completely different. Here you have to read the game faster, faster, and you don't have a little time to waste. This shocked me a little. I remember how the players came straight for you in the preseason and it was kind of like ‘Wow! ’It feels like a moment. But you will get used to it, improve yourself and be prepared. The coaches and brothers made me feel like I was part of this big family.
"Getting to London from Brazil means a huge step. Language is a big challenge because I don't know a word except 'hi' and 'thank you'. I took language class, but when I was injured, I learned the most. For example, when I was not injured, I could also talk to David Luis on the court or in the locker room, but because I was injured and I had been with the physiotherapist, and only English was in those six months."
After playing famous at Arsenal, there was also a mystery around Martinelli, that is, how would he choose which national team he would represent. Although Brazilian coach Titt allowed him to participate in the training camp of the Brazilian national team as early as 2019, Martinelli only played for Brazil's U23 and Brazil's National Olympic Team until this year, and Italian Football Association has been expressing his interest in him, and Jorginho has also come forward to recruit him.
However, in March this year, Martinelli represented Brazil in the World Cup qualifiers, which also means that he officially chose Brazil and at least he will not be able to change his team in the short term. With the performance of the Gunners star and the message conveyed by the Brazilian national team, it is very hopeful to see him running on the World Cup this year.
