"A very different approach" – Mikel Arteta blown away by what Arsenal star did against Manchester United
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has heaped praise on Gabriel Martinelli for his great display in a 2-1 pre-season friendly win over Manchester United on Saturday (July 27).
The Gunners, who beat Bournemouth 5-4 on penalties in their last friendly contest, came back from a goal down to register their second straight triumph in the United States. They went 1-0 behind in the 10th minute after Rasmus Hojlund thumped a shot past Karl Hein.
However, Gabriel Jesus restored parity with a strike in the 26th minute. Afterwards, Martinelli bagged the winner in the 81st minute after replacing Reiss Nelson in the 71st minute of the pre-season encounter.
After the end of Arsenal's second friendly game, Arteta was asked to share his two cents on Martinelli's fine cameo performance. He responded (h/t football.london):
"That's the mentality of the team and the individuals. One training session and he comes in and plays at that level. That means he's not coming here to get prepared, he's come prepared to show how prepared he is, and that's a very different approach. I loved it."
Martinelli, who played in two games for Brazil at the Copa America 2024, produced a sensational display at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. He completed all three of his passes and all three of his dribbles, and won four of six duels in the match against Manchester United.
Last campaign, the 23-year-old winger started 31 of his 44 appearances across all competitions for Arsenal. He registered eight goals, including six in the league, and five assists in 2640 minutes of action.
Mikel Arteta impressed by Arsenal striker's outing in clash against Manchester United
After the Gunners' 2-1 win against Manchester United, Mikel Arteta lauded Gabriel Jesus for his goalscoring performance in Los Angeles. the Spaniard remarked (h/t football.london):
"He looks really good. He looks really sharp. He has changed a lot of things over the summer. He has come in top condition again. And when you have that baseline, other things can be built but without that foundation, you don't have a player. He needs to be in that condition to get the best out of him. He has realized that. And I'm really happy with what he's shown today again."
Jesus, 27, completed 12 of 17 passes and three of five dribbles, and won six of 15 overall duels in Arsenal's win over Manchester United.
The Brazilian netted eight goals in 36 games for Arsenal last term.