Gabriel Martinelli is “pushing to stay” at Arsenal despite the club “reluctantly” considering selling him this summer, sources have told Football Insider, setting up a summer standoff between a player determined to prove himself and a club looking to raise funds for further investment.
Martinelli enters the final year of his contract this summer and has started just nine Premier League games in 2025-26, a steep drop from the 25 starts he registered last season.
Arsenal are eyeing a new left-sided winger ahead of next campaign, with concerns over both Martinelli’s productivity and Leandro Trossard’s, and the 24-year-old Brazilian has been identified as a candidate to sell if the right offer arrives. But the player himself is not interested in leaving and wants to fight for his place at the Emirates.
Is Martinelli really on the decline?
The statistics paint a clear picture of a player who has fallen down the pecking order rather than one who has significantly declined in quality.
His goals and assists tally in the Premier League has dropped from 12 last season to just four this term, but his shots on target per 90 has actually improved slightly, from 0.98 to 1.06. The more telling numbers are his chances created per 90, which has fallen from 1.57 to 0.96, and his starts, which tells you more about his situation than any underlying metric. He has barely played. It is difficult to evaluate a player who is not being given the opportunity to perform consistently.
That context is important when considering what he might still offer Arsenal. His successful dribble rate per 90 has improved from 1.29 to 1.91 this season (something that led to Arsenal scoring that goal against Sporting in the mid-week), suggesting that when he does play, he is taking opponents on with more confidence and conviction than before.
The raw output has dropped because the minutes have dropped.
Why Arsenal are reluctantly open to selling Gabriel Martinelli?
The financial reality is driving this as much as any footballing decision.
Arsenal spent heavily last summer and sporting director Andrea Berta is now planning a trimming of the squad to balance the books and create space for new arrivals.
Martinelli, with one year left on his contract, represents one of the more saleable assets in the fringe of the group. Selling him now returns a significant fee. Keeping him into the final year of his deal risks losing him for nothing in 2027.
Ben White is another name that Football Insider think is on a summer sale candidate list with Gabriel Jesus, who has struggled to re-establish himself after returning from injury, is also likely to find himself available.
The club’s preference is to protect the players who are central to Arteta’s first-choice plans and move on those who are not.
Can Martinelli change Arsenal’s mind before the summer window?
The final weeks of the season are his opportunity to make the case that he should stay.
Arsenal are still in the Champions League and Premier League title race and have fixtures remaining where Arteta may need to rotate and give Martinelli minutes.
If he can produce the kind of direct, energetic performances that made him such an exciting prospect when he first broke through, the club may reconsider. The player clearly believes he can.
Whether Arteta and Berta give him that chance, or whether a significant offer from elsewhere makes the decision for everyone, is what the summer will answer.
