Arsenal target “world-class” £243k-p/w Martinelli upgrade

It’s not been a great week for Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s side fell to a poor 1-1 draw against Manchester United in the Premier League, and then, while it ultimately didn’t matter, a much-changed team drew 2-2 with PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

However, aside from going through to the competition’s quarter-finals, which was all but sewn up the first leg, there was some positive team news: Gabriel Martinelli made his second substitute appearance after missing about a month of football with a hamstring injury.

The Brazilian ace could play a big role for the Gunners in the closing stages of the season, but his place in the team may be less assured next year, as recent reports have linked the club with a potential upgrade.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from Bild, as relayed in a report from Spain, Arsenal are interested in Bayern Munich star Leroy Sané.

In fact, the report has revealed that it’s Arteta who is pushing hardest for the club to sign the German superstar once his €288k-per-week contract – about £243k – expires in the summer.

Now, the former Manchester City ace has expressed a desire to stay in Munich beyond the end of the season, but no progress has been made on a renewal, leaving the door wide open for the North Londoners and other sides.

While Sané won’t cost Arsenal a fee, he could be a costly addition to the wage bill, but given his immense ability and experience, he is one worth taking on, especially as he could be the perfect Martinelli upgrade.

How Sané compares to Martinelli

The first thing to say is that while Sané has the ability to play off either flank, he’d almost certainly come into the team primarily as an option off the left – his most played position – as with Bukayo Saka and now Ethan Nwaeri, the right seems totally locked down.

Therefore, the German’s primary long-term rival for game time at the Emirates would more likely than not be Martinelli, and for our money, that’s a competition he’d come out on top in.

For example, despite seeing his game time decrease at Bayern this term, the former Manchester City star has still been able to score eight goals and provide four assists in 34 appearances, totalling 1711 minutes.

That means the “world-class” winger, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, is averaging a goal involvement every 2.83 games, or, more crucially, every 142.58 minutes.

In contrast, the former Ituano gem has scored seven goals and provided four assists in 37 appearances, totalling 2421 minutes, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 3.36 games, or every 220 minutes.

The one-sided nature of the comparison only continues when we take a look under the hood at their underlying numbers.

The Essen-born star comes out ahead in practically every relevant metric, including but not limited to actual and expected non-penalty goals plus assists, progressive passes, shots and shots on target, key passes, shot and goal-creating actions, successful take-ons and more, all per 90.

Ultimately, while Martinelli is a talented winger and someone who could still be an important squad player for Arsenal, it’s clear that Sane is the far better winger.

Therefore, Arteta and Co should do what they can to bring him to North London this summer.

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