Ian Wright criticizes Arsenal's treatment of Martinelli amid exit talks

Arsenal opened their Premier League title defence with a clean, clinical 3-0 win over Coventry City. Inside the Emirates, it felt like business as usual: Bukayo Saka curling one in, Kai Havertz on the scoresheet, Martin Odegaard steering the game like a captain who has seen it all before.

But one name was missing. Completely.

Gabriel Martinelli was nowhere near the squad. Again.

Wright: “It makes me feel uncomfortable”

While the scoreline flattered Arsenal’s dominance, the post-match conversation quickly turned away from the goals and towards the Brazilian winger’s absence – and Ian Wright did not hold back.

Speaking on Sky Sports after the game, the former Arsenal striker made it clear he is deeply unhappy with how the club and Mikel Arteta are handling Martinelli’s situation.

“In respects to Martinelli and the way Martinelli has been treated at the moment it really makes me feel uncomfortable,” Wright said.

Martinelli, 25, has just a year left on his contract and has been pushed to the fringes at the very moment his future needs clarity. Left out of the matchday squad against Coventry. Left out of the Community Shield win over Manchester City last Sunday. Left, according to Wright, without answers.

“Not being in the squad, not being spoken to, doesn’t know what’s going on… not being involved in the Community Shield squad, he doesn’t know what’s happening, I think he’s got a year left [on his contract],” Wright added.

Transfer stand-off and a player in limbo

Arsenal are open to selling Martinelli before the end of the summer window. Galatasaray tested that stance with a £38 million bid last week, but the winger has told the club he does not want to move to the Turkish league.

So he waits. And watches.

From the outside, it looks like a classic modern stand-off: a club ready to move on, a player unconvinced by the exits on offer, and a contract ticking down. From the inside, Wright suggests it feels much more personal.

“He always gives 100 per cent, I’m not saying he’s the greatest, he’s really come up with some big moments for Arsenal, some big games, he’s scored some very important goals… the way he’s been treated at the end here, I know they might want him out, and there’s a lot of people saying, ‘yeah, maybe it’s time for him to move on’, but there’s ways of doing that and it should suit him as well, how he wants to leave,” Wright said.

The criticism isn’t about the decision to upgrade the squad. It’s about the way it’s being done.

“He’s done enough to be treated with more respect”

Wright drew a sharp contrast between being pushed aside by an undisputed superstar and being eased out for players still fighting to prove they belong at that level.

“If you bring Vini [Vinicius Junior] in, that kind of level in, Martinelli can say to himself, ‘well, okay, they’ve brought him and Tzolis, I might be third [choice]’,” Wright said.

“But if you’re bringing Tzolis in, and he’s looking at Tzolis, you look at Madueke on the other [wing], you’re thinking to yourself, ‘I think I can still have it with these two, I still think I’ve got something to offer here’.”

That is the sting. Martinelli, in Wright’s eyes, has earned the right to compete, not simply disappear from the teamsheet without explanation.

“For him to be nowhere near it, it makes me feel sad for him,” Wright admitted.

“I’m just saying I think he’s done enough with this team, with this squad, to be treated with a little bit more respect than he’s being treated at the moment.”

Arsenal march on – but at what cost?

Arsenal’s performance against Coventry suggested a side ready to go again in the title race: sharp, ruthless, and already in stride. The atmosphere around the team feels buoyant, the football convincing.

Yet beneath that, the Martinelli saga lingers. A homegrown favourite in the eyes of many supporters, a player who has delivered big goals in big games, now finds himself on the outside looking in as the season kicks off.

Arsenal have made their move. Martinelli has made his stance on Galatasaray clear. The window is still open.

Something has to give.