Arsenal starlet Gabriel Martinelli has detailed his first day with the Gunners in an interview with Four Four Two, the ace revealed his thoughts after meeting Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for the first time.
The 18-year-old was signed from Brazilian outfit Ituano last summer and quickly established himself as a serious talent with some impressive performances in cup competitions.
Martinelli told Four Four Two that his first thoughts after meeting talisman and now Arsenal skipper Aubameyang were ‘F**k’, the Brazilian revealed that he felt ‘shy’ at the time.
The lightning-fast forward has shown no since of nerves on the pitch, the ace has bagged 10 goals and registered four assists from 26 appearances across all competitions this season.
Here’s what Martinelli had to say on his first day:
“When I turned up it was lunchtime, and only [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang was sat at the table, my first thought was, ‘F**k!’”
“I sat next to him, a bit shy, but as Auba speaks Spanish, he struck up a conversation and asked where I was from. We had a nice chat.”
“He had met a random guy from another country, but was so kind and wished me luck.”
“After that, there were some pre-season assessments at the gym. All the players were there: [Mesut] Ozil, [Alexandre] Lacazette, Auba… but I couldn’t speak a word of English. ‘Oh my god’ was my initial reaction.”
Martinelli has now started to establish himself as an important first-team player for the Gunners, the youngster has been used as a centre-forward or as a winger.
The Brazilian has shown an impressive level of maturity when fielded in his less natural role on the wing, with the ace displaying a solid work-rate and commitment to help out on the defensive side of the game.
The Gunners have looked encouraging since former captain Mikel Arteta was named as manager.
The north London outfit are sitting ninth in the Premier League table – but have every chance of beating their rivals to a Champions League spot whenever the season returns after the Coronavirus pandemic is dealt with.