Gabriel Martinelli missed Arsenal’s win over Brentford (Picture: Getty)
Gabriel Martinelli faces a race against time to be fit to feature against Porto on Tuesday after the Arsenal winger was spotted on crutches following Saturday’s win over Brentford.
The Brazil international has been in scintillating form of late and was on the scoresheet again in Monday’s 6-0 thrashing of Sheffield United.
Martinelli’s evening was cut short, however, when he was forced off shortly after the hour mark following a heavy challenge.
Mikel Arteta revealed after the game that the 22-year-old had merely sustained a heavy cut, but the injury was serious enough for it rule him out of the London derby against the Bees.
Arsenal moved to the top of the Premier League table in the absence of Martinelli thanks to Kai Havertz’s late headed winner.
That victory was tempered slightly, however, by the news that Martinelli was seen by Football.London walking through the mixed zone after the match with the aid of crutches.
Arsenal, meanwhile had swept all before them since the turn of the year, winning seven games in succession and scoring almost at will.
It was a different story against Brentford who made life tough for the home side during the second half and Arteta was delighted by the resolve his team showed to dig themselves out of trouble.
‘I am really satisfied with the performance and the result obviously, and the manner we did it,’ he said.
‘It was against a team that demands a lot of emotional control and we did in a great way. We showed courage and we were rewarded.
‘At 1-0 it could have been a very different game but with the goal we conceded we had to play that game, but in the end we deserved to win the game.
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‘That is the beautiful thing about this stadium. They support with mistakes. We had certain things we would have to overcome, we were going to do it and we fully believed we would do it.
‘The manner of the win, 100%. The spirit we showed. Tomorrow will be a great day to watch some fantastic games of football.
‘It is not in my hands, it is a joy to be part of this league and a joy to be part of something special that we are trying to achieve.’
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