Arsenal legend Ian Wright has perhaps put a bit too much pressure on Gabriel Martinelli with his comments after the win over West Ham.
The young Brazilian put in a superb display up front for the Gunners as they beat the Hammers 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium in a crucial top four six-pointer yesterday evening.
Martinelli’s composed finish gave Arsenal the lead, and he was one of the stand-out performers throughout the game as Mikel Arteta lined up without Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Gooners will be pleased with what they saw from Martinelli up front, as well as Alexandre Lacazette, but Wright might be getting a bit ahead of himself with comments comparing the 20-year-old to Aubameyang, saying he can be his ‘heir’.
“We know he’s capable of that,” Wright said, as quoted by the Metro.
“He’s been unlucky and curtailed by injuries. When he gets into this kind of situation he shows great composure and it’s a great finish.
“You’re hoping he can continue because he’s the kind of person if their is going to be an heir to the throne in respects of Aubameyang and what he’s done, then this guy can do it.
“But can he sustain it? Can he be consistent in his goalscoring? Can we create the chances? Because if we can we’ve got a really good chance of scoring more goals and creating more chances.”
Arsenal fans will no doubt be excited about Martinelli’s potential, but it remains to be seen if he’ll ever hit the heights of Aubameyang, who has been one of the most lethal forwards in the game for almost a decade now.
There’s a reason the Gabon international was made Arsenal captain in the first place, and even if he’s now lost the armband, and perhaps his place in Arteta’s XI too, there can be no question that it’s still going to be a lot of work for a young player like Martinelli to replace him.