Arsenal chasing outstanding Martinelli upgrade for free

Arsenal kicked 2025 off in perfect style last night.

Mikel Arteta’s side won their third Premier League game on the bounce by beating the inform Brentford 3-1 at the Gtech Community Stadium and looked significantly more dangerous than they did against Ipswich Town in the process.

Gabriel Jesus, Mikel Merino, and Gabriel Martinelli were on the scoresheet for the North Londoners, and even though that’s two goals in three games for the latter, he could be about to lose his place in the team.

Yes, recent reports have linked the Gunners with another brilliant attacker who could be an upgrade on the Brazilian winger, an attacker who has some shades of Ethan Nwaneri about him.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Arsenal are one of several teams very interested in signing Barcelona’s Dani Olmo.

Alongside the Gunners, the report has revealed that fellow Premier League sides Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are all keen on the Spaniard, while Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen have also shown interest.

The report claims that the player has his heart set on staying in Barcelona, but should the club fail in their bid to register him by January 3rd, he’d be unable to play in Spain until next season and be available on a free, which could make a move away almost inevitable.

It could be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given Olmo’s sensational ability and versatility, it’s one worth pursuing, especially as he could be an ideal Martinelli upgrade and shares some similarities with Nwaneri.

How Olmo compares to Martinelli and Nwaneri

So, before we look at how Olmo stacks up against Martinelli, let’s first examine the similarities between him and Nwaneri.

The first is that, like the young Englishman, the Spaniard is more than capable of playing in multiple positions, and while he has played in attacking midfield more than anywhere else, he’s got plenty of experience playing off the right and left of a front three, akin to the teenager’s position last night.

The second similarity is that while both players are very technically gifted and brilliant passers of the ball, capable of setting up chances for their teammates, they’re both real goal threats.

For example, the Gunners’ Hale End gem has already scored four goals for the first team in just 432 minutes of action this season, while the Barça star has six goals to his name in 15 games this year, as well as an assist to boot.

This similarity is also one of the key reasons why the “outstanding” international, as dubbed by former boss Julian Nagelsmann, could be a dream upgrade on Martinelli, as even though the Brazilian has as many goals and one more assist under his belt this season, he’s made 25 appearances.

This means that the former Ituano gem is currently averaging a goal involvement every 3.12 games, while the former Leipzig star is averaging one every 2.14 games.

Moreover, when we look under the hood at their underlying numbers from this season, it’s the “incredible” 26-year-old, as dubbed by Pep Guardiola, who comes out way ahead.

For example, the Terrassa-born dynamo comes out on top in practically every relevant metric, including, but not limited to, non-penalty expected and actual goals plus assists, progressive passes, passing accuracy, shots and shots on target, shot and goal-creating actions and successful take-ons, all per 90.

Ultimately, while Martinelli can be a useful asset for Arsenal, Olmo appears to be the superior player in almost every regard, so the club should do all they can to bring him to N5 this month.

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