“Rubbish” Gabriel Martinelli blasted for being ‘disrespectful’ after what he did in Aston Villa comeback win

“Rubbish” Gabriel Martinelli blasted for being ‘disrespectful’ after what he did in Aston Villa comeback win

Former Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor was extremely upset with Gabriel Martinelli after the Brazilian scored a crucial goal for Arsenal in a dramatic victory in the Midlands.

Despite being 2-1 down at half-time, Arsenal managed to equalize through Oleksandr Zinchenko’s first goal for the club, and then sealed the win in stoppage time.

Jorginho forced Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez to score an own goal, while Martinelli added the final goal by running unopposed and tapping the ball into an empty net after Martinez had gone up for a late corner in an attempt to salvage a draw for the home team.

For Agbonlahor, the primary source of irritation was not Martinelli’s goal, but rather his celebration.

Prior to tapping the ball into the net, the 21-year-old raised his arms in celebration, acknowledging the supporters before scoring.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Agbonlahor said: “I thought Arsenal were impressive second half. They didn’t turn up first half but second half, they were relentless. Saka, getting at players. Xhaka, Odegaard was finding space and Arsenal thoroughly deserved the win.

“But there was part of the game I didn’t like. I didn’t like Martinelli for me, running through, empty net and he’s celebrating before he puts the ball in the back of the net.

“He’s been rubbish for a month and he’s scoring a tap-in and celebrating before he’s even scored. [It’s a] lack of respect for your teammates. I didn’t like it.”

Martinelli’s goal against Villa marked his eighth goal of the season, which has been highly productive for the 21-year-old. However, it was his first goal since the start of the year, and his lack of goals during that period resulted in him being dropped to the bench at Villa Park.

Speaking about the youngster’s current form, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta said: “It wasn’t dropping him [Martinelli] – he’s played every single minute. We have three 21-year-olds leading the frontline – that’s unheard of.

“Leo’s [Leandro Trossard] been doing really well and we needed impact. I was really worried about the last 20 or 25 minutes in this game because of everything we put in on Wednesday. We needed energy and I think [Martinelli provided] it.”

After the victory over Aston Villa, Arsenal currently sit at the top of the Premier League table, while title rivals Manchester City failed to win against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

With a two-point lead and a game in hand over Pep Guardiola’s team, the Gunners will be hoping to extend their advantage in the coming weekend, as they travel to the King Power Stadium to face Leicester City, while Man City take on Bournemouth on the South Coast.

“Rubbish” Gabriel Martinelli blasted for being ‘disrespectful’ after what he did in Aston Villa comeback win