Arsenal fans have a lot to say about Gabriel Martinelli after noticing surprise position for Brazil

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Gabriel Martinelli caught the attention of Arsenal fans during Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Uruguay.

Martinelli was one of 10 first team players at Arsenal on international duty during the November break.

The Brazilian winger earned a late call-up from Dorival Junior, seeing him join Gabriel Magalhaes to link up with the Selecao.

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, Martinelli and Gabriel featured for Brazil in their draw with Uruguay, rounding off the Gunners’ international action for 2024.

• READ MORE: How many minutes Arsenal stars played in international break compared to Liverpool and Man City

Arsenal fans react to Gabriel Martinelli’s position for Brazil

The Arsenal winger will be delighted to have earned a call-up amid a trialling patch of form over the past year.

What was interesting about Brazil’s draw against Uruguay was that Martinelli played a central role, coming on as a substitute to play 32 minutes.

In North London, many are accustomed to seeing the 23-year-old occupy only the wide areas, with fans quickly reacting to the forward assuming a central position. 

A Brazilian Arsenal fan took to X to say, “Martinelli in midfield was great! It’s a shame that no one takes advantage of it at Arsenal!”

“This is the most instinctive I’ve seen him in a while. Still think Martinelli has a future at CF,” another supporter said.

Gooners far and wide shared a similar opinion on the Brazil international, calling on Mikel Arteta to take note of Martinelli’s positioning.

“Dunno how many times I gotta say it…Martinelli is a CF his goal ratio is better at CF than at LW.”

“Put this guy in the middle,” one Arsenal fan demanded.

“True he’s not very physical and may get ruffled by CBs but he’s G/A will take a huge lift!! Burdening him with running up and down the wing has taken a toll on his attacking outputs.”

“He is a cf not a winger,” another said, with the verdict in North London rather clear, “Anything than LW would do.”

Brazil fans had a different opinion on Martinelli

While the impression from Arsenal supporters was that they’d like to see more of Martinelli in a central role with more freedom, the consensus in Brazil was different.

“Martinelli didn’t play very well,” a Brazilian supporter said after the Selecao’s draw.

Reacting to a post about the Arsenal star’s performance against Uruguay, another Brazil native said, “You’ve got to be kidding… he got 5 of the 10 passes wrong!”

Others had a slightly different view, commending Martinelli’s efforts while questioning the decision of Dorival Junior.

“For a position he doesn’t play, I was agonised because there were a lot of plays he didn’t know how to take advantage of.

“But it’s fair, the guy really wasn’t in his position, so I’m not even going to charge him, I’m charging the crazy guy called Dorival Jr.”

With reference to what the future holds for Martinelli’s position, Arteta is armed with mixed reviews following the Brazilian’s cameo against Uruguay, with a lot to prove back in North London.