Arsenal hit the jackpot on sensational star worth far more than Gordon

Arsenal came into this week on cloud nine.

Mikel Arteta’s side had just hammered Manchester City 5-1 at the Emirates and just about kept themselves in the Premier League title race for another week.

However, the double whammy of no signings on deadline day and another 2-0 humbling away to Newcastle United in the League Cup have sapped all the positive energy building around the club.

What made the defeat to the Toon all the more painful was that the difference between their frontline and the Gunners’ was so stark, with Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon running Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba ragged.

Interestingly, while the Englishman scored the second goal of the night and looked nigh unplayable, one of the Gunners’ starters is worth millions more than him.

Gordon’s record against Arsenal

Prior to kick-off, it would be fair to say that most of the attention from fans and pundits alike was on the sensational Isak, which, considering his incredible tally of 19 goals and five assists this season and the constant links to Arsenal, made perfect sense.

However, once the first ball was kicked, it became instantly apparent that Gordon would be just as much of a problem for Arteta’s men.

Alongside constantly beating Jurrien Timber down the Toon’s left, the former Everton gem was also in the perfect place to exploit Fabian Schar’s interception of David Raya’s hospital pass to Declan Rice early in the second half, giving the hosts an unassailable lead.

The 23-year-old has become a real problem for the North Londoners in recent seasons, scoring in the first leg, providing the assist for Isak’s goal in the league earlier this season and scoring the winner at home last year.

In all, the Liverpool-born dynmao has become an incredibly dangerous winger over the last couple of years and is more than deserving of his lofty valuation from Football Transfers, which goes up to €49.5m, or £41.4m.

However, even though Gordon tore Arsenal asunder on Wednesday night, one of their starting attackers is still worth millions more than him.

The Arsenal star worth millions more than Gordon

It’s no secret that Arsenal’s best attacker and most likely their best player overall is the sensational Bukayo Saka, but due to the hamstring injury he sustained away to Crystal Palace in December, the team had to do without him against Newcastle.

Following his incredible goal against Manchester City on the weekend, some were calling for Arteta to start Ethan Nwaneri in his place on Wednesday night, but the manager opted to go unchanged from the team who beat the Champions and started Gabriel Martinelli on the right, who is the man with a higher valuation than Gordon.

The 23-year-old winger joined the North Londoners from Brazilian outfit Ituano for just £6m in the summer of 2019, but according to Football Transfers, he is now worth up to a whopping €65m, which is about £54.3m, or a massive £12.9m more than the Englishman’s valuation.

Now, some of you may dispute this price tag as, over the last season and a half, the Guarulhos-born ace hasn’t been all that effective, racking up a haul of 13 goal involvements last year and 11 this year.

However, while that is a fair point to raise, the valuation is also likely taking into consideration his age and the fact that in the 22/23 campaign, he was practically “unplayable” at times, per pundit Owen Hargreaves.

For example, in 46 appearances that year, the “sensational” attacker, as dubbed by U23 scout Antonio Mango, scored 15 goals and provided six assists, which comes to an average of a goal involvement every 1.85 games.

Ultimately, the price from Football Transfers might still be too generous, but Martinelli is an undeniably talented footballer, and perhaps when the club finally add a new striker to the team, we might see him back at his best.

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