Arsenal legend Ian Wright says Gabriel Martinelli’s lack of goals and assists this season is simply down to a lack of service.

The Brazilian thrives in open space, taking advantage of his pace to take on opposing players one-on-one. However, Wright believes his teammates have not been getting the ball to him quickly enough, and that is something manager Mikel Arteta can address:

“You look at Martinelli, especially earlier on when he was doing what he was doing. He was torching people. I would love to see at some stage Mikel find the same kind of service to him as quickly as they possibly can because he is somebody that wants to go past on the outside or on the inside.

“If Martinelli gets the ball and there’s two behind, Martinelli, we know that he will try to take them on. But on the main, he will come back and pass it back. I hate to see Martinelli going back the other way because the ball has not got there quick enough. Those are the things that I am thinking we have to be quicker in getting the ball to him.”

Martinelli’s form this campaign has been concerning

It should be pointed out that the winger did contribute to Arsenal‘s opening goal against Fulham at the weekend. It was his shot that forced Bernd Leno into a save before Bukayo Saka scored from the rebound.

However, Martinelli’s numbers in the Premier League don’t make for good reading. He has scored just twice and contributed only 2 assists in 18 appearances. That is a stark contrast to last season when he bagged 15 goals.

Arsenal’s attack has been misfiring

Martinelli is not the only one struggling. Saka is the Gunners’ top scorer in the Premier League this campaign with 6, but 2 of those were penalties. Gabriel Jesus, meanwhile, has only managed 3.

It’s concerning that Eddie Nketiah is the club’s second top scorer in the league with 5, especially when you consider that 3 of those came in one match against Sheffield United.