Penalty miss gave Martinelli sleepless night before he had one-to-one with Arteta

On Mar 20, 2023

Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli admitted he struggled to sleep after his missed penalty saw the Gunners tumble out of the Europa League.

Mikel Arteta’s side were knocked out of the competition by Sporting Lisbon, who managed to force a penalty shootout thanks to an extraordinary 45 yard effort from Pedro Goncalves. After Ruben Amorim’s side all converted their penalties with aplomb, Martinelli’s effort from 12-yards was comfortably saved by Sporting shot-stopper Antonio Adan.

Fortunately for Martinelli and his side, the Brazilian international came roaring back in the Premier League, smashing home the first goal in a dominant 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace. And the 21-year-old was relieved he could put the nightmare of the penalty shootout behind him.

“It is life,” Martinelli said after the match, when asked about his penalty miss. “Not every game you are going to score and play well.

“Of course I was sad and spent the whole night thinking about that penalty but it is over. I scored a goal today and we got the three points, the most important thing.” After Arsenal star-boy Bukayo Saka found Martinelli with a lovely pass, he allowed the ball to come across him, before smashing the ball into the far corner with his left foot.

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Martinelli opened the scoring against Crystal Palace
(Image: Photo by Mark Leech/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

It was his 13th goal of the campaign for the Gunners and his sixth strike in six Premier League matches. “Very happy, we needed that win and as I always say, we approach the games as a final and we did that today,” he added.

“It was a good goal, good pass from B [Bukayo Saka]. I don’t know if it was to me or someone else but it was a good finish with my weak foot, good goal.” Arsenal manager Arteta can also be praised for showing extra faith in the 21-year-old.

Arteta also had a word with Martinelli before the victory against Crystal Palace

Many managers may have responded by taking the forward out of the spotlight so he can have more time to process and overcome the disappointment. However, the Arsenal boss explained that Martinelli could not wait to get back onto the pitch.

“The reaction he had after missing a penalty [on Thursday], there is always the question,” Arteta said after the victory. “But I asked him yesterday how he was and he said: ‘I want to be in the team’.”