Gabriel Martinelli will play a key role for Arsenal on Tuesday while organizing PSG in the first stage of their Champions League-Halve Final, with the Brazilian who contributes to the pressure on his side
Gabriel Martinelli described the confrontation with Paris Saint Germain as the biggest game of his life. And it is also a huge opportunity for Mikel Arteta to transform an underwhelming season into a historic season.
This is the first semi -final of Arsenal in 16 years and despite all their success over the years, they are massive underperformers in Europe. That is why Arsenal wing player Martinelli regards this as a huge opportunity for this generation to write their name in Clubfolklore.
Martinelli said: “It is the biggest game of my life. Since I was five or six years old, it is a dream. We deserve to be here and we are ready. It's a chance for our lives. Everyone who loves football wants to play in these games. We have to enjoy the moment and be ready.
“We deserve to be here, we deserve to win something for one of the great clubs in Europe. We have a great opportunity and we will go into the game in the conviction that we can do it. We have never won this dream, the club has never won the title and we earn it because we are one of the biggest clubs in the world.”
Arsenal was supposed to be the team that performed this season and won the Premier League title when Manchester City faltered. But the Gunners, despite still second place, have been a big disappointment in their own country.
The transfers – in particular the biggest signing of last summer, £ 42 million defender Riccardo Calafiori – have not worked, they have been inconsistent and have fallen short. Arsenal, however, has been excellent in Europe and switched Real Madrid out in the final round with Martinelli score in the Bernabeu.
That continued a great record that when Martinelli scored – and he scored 50 in his Arsenal career – the club has never lost. It is a record that he wants to expand, but it says that he would like to see if it meant that Arsenal would win the Champions League for the first time.
Martinelli said: “If I have to run 15 km, I don't score and we win the Champions League, then I will still be the happiest man in the world. I try to do my best for the team. I don't think about that album, but I know it.
“When we play against Vini and Rodrygo, I know that the players need a little help, so I and B (Bukayo Saka) try to help Jurrien (Timber) and Myles (Lewis-SKILY) and work hard for the team. We have a huge respect for PSG, we watched them.
Martinelli, 23, who is left for two years in his current deal, entered Arsenal in 2019 and has been a large part of the revolution of Arsenal Boss Arteta in the Emirates. But with that also busy and the competition has come, because he insisted that he is also ready, even if Arsenal draws big this summer with Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams under their large summer goals.
Martinelli said: “We are playing for Arsenal, it is one of the biggest and best clubs in the world, so we are used to it. We are a big club, so we need the best players. It has been a great journey for me, I have improved a lot and when I was here we played in the Europa League and now we are in the Semi -Final of the Final of the Final of the Final of the Final of the Final.
“I am really happy here here, this is my home, I love the club and the club has given me so much, not only on the field, but also outside the field. The people who work at the club, they have been great for me. Everyone must have his dreams, when I was in Brazil, I knew it could be real, I knew it could be possible and the best I could be.”
Martinelli also stated that the men from Arsenal are ready to follow the example of the women after their remarkable victory in Lyon to reach their Champions League final. He added: “We are really proud of the girls and we want to do the same. We are very happy to be here and we want to go one step further.”