Gabriel Martinelli has hailed the impact of Brazilian compatriot Gabriel Jesus after Arsenal claimed a hard-fought 2-1 win against Aston Villa on Wednesday night.
THE LOWDOWN: BARELY PUT A FOOT WRONG
It is safe to say Gabriel Jesus is enjoying life at Arsenal and his performances with each passing day seem to emphasize that even more. Having joined from Manchester City over the summer, the Brazilian has enjoyed a promising start to his career at the Emirates and put the Gunners in front against Villa with his third strike of the season.
The visitors improved after half-time and grabbed an equalizer through an unlikely source after Douglas Luiz sent in a direct corner-kick effort.
Just 151 seconds separated Villa’s equalizer and Martinelli’s winner, with the Brazilian striking a 77-th minute volley to finish off a stellar assist from Bukayo Saka – a combination that meant both players are now the youngest goalscorers and assisters u21 in the Premier League since the start of last season.
Asides grabbing a goal, Jesus was tireless all through the night and Martinelli did not hold back in his praise for his attacking partner.
THE LATEST: MORE PRAISE FROM JESUS
It is becoming a familiar sight now to hear praises about Jesus, given his performances on the pitch and even his attitude off it.
Earlier this summer, Martinelli already described the 25-year-old as one of the world’s best strikers and has now doubled up on the praise for his compatriot.
“We are delighted with the performance and the result as well,” Martinelli said as per the Arsenal website.
“That is the spirit we need to keep for the whole season.”
“We need to keep patient and we deserved the win and got the three points. We always try to score and we conceded from a set-piece.”
“I’m feeling great [but it’s] not just me, I think the whole team, the staff, the fans – everyone is happy today. We are trying to win every single game. [We go] game by game and that’s the mentality we need to have.”
On Jesus’ impact at Arsenal, Martinelli added: “He makes our job so much easier. On He is a beast. He is everywhere on the pitch, we are so happy with him and we are lucky to have him here.”
THE VERDICT: MENTALITY SHIFT IS OBVIOUS
Last season, Arsenal were almost bottom of the table in terms of points taken from losing position. This time around, it has been a trail of positive responses.
Martinelli’s goal continued an encouraging trend of instant responses this season. The Gunners scored within two minutes after conceding to Leicester City in the 4-2 win at the Emirates, as well as coming from behind to beat Fulham at the weekend.
This attitude is a very much-welcome development and one that will surely see Arsenal land ‘extra’ points ahead of what will be a challenging season on all fronts.