ARSENAL continued a good week with a thumping 5-0 win at home to Nottingham Forest.
Gabriel Martinelli was the star of the show with a double while Rob Holding, Joe Willock and Reiss Nelson got on the scoresheet – but there will be concerns over Emile Smith Rowe after he was stretchered off before half time.
Follow all the latest news and gossip from the Emirates right here…
-
MANCHESTER UNITED snubbed the chance to sign Arsenal starlet Gabriel Martinelli – and the decision could come back to haunt them next week.
United had been tracking the highly-rated teenager along with a host of other top clubs in Europe and beat them all to inviting him over for a trial.
Martinelli says he made four trips from his home in Brazil to train with United's youth team – including linking up with Mason Greenwood.
Speaking of United, Martinelli said: “Between 2015 and 2017 I went there four times and trained for about 15 days.
“I asked to take a picture with [Patrice] Evra, [Marouane] Fellaini and other guys.
“Pogba knew I was Brazilian and asked if everything was okay with me and where I was playing. We took a picture together.”
-
UNAI EMERY has challenged Granit Xhaka to silence his Arsenal critics after confirming the Swiss international as his first choice skipper.
Xhaka was booed off the Emirates pitch when he was substituted during last week’s 3-2 win against Aston Villa.
But that did not deter his Gunners team-mates from voting him top of their poll to select the five-man captaincy group.
Emery confirmed: “The five captains are number one Xhaka then Aubameyang two, Bellerin, Lacazette and number five is Mesut Ozil.
“I asked all the players to vote because I wanted to know their opinions. I gave them some values and qualities that I was looking for and after that I checked the results.
“In pre-season we had three captains – Mesut, Xhaka and Nacho Monreal. But I wanted five and then Nacho left.
“So I decided to wait until the squad was closed at the beginning of this month because Nacho, Laurent Koscielny and Henrikh Mkhitaryan all left us and I didn’t want a player voting who was not going to be with us for the season.”
-
ARSENAL legend Martin Keown has criticised Unai Emery's decision to appoint Granit Xhaka as club captain, insisting it should have gone to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The Gunners gaffer was slammed by supporters for picking the Swiss star to wear the armband following a player vote.
Speaking to talkSPORT, he said: “This is a massive call and I think perhaps he [Emery] has got it wrong.
“This is really going to divide the fans. There are times when Xhaka goes missing in midfield, he’s given penalties away… he must be an incredible character off the pitch!
“It’s surprising, particularly how he was booed off the pitch less than a week ago.
“It’s a brave decision by the manager, he’s picked him every time he’s available so he clearly believes in the player, but I’m surprised, I must say.
“You need to be sure the captain is going to be in the team and he’s on borrowed time.
“There are others in that group, Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi, Dani Ceballos, who are starting to progress, so if Xhaka is still going to be a permanent fixture than I’m surprised by that.
“I would have gone for Aubameyang, he would have been a pretty good fit. It might have given him a little more extra responsibility. He’s doing fantastically well at the moment and he’s secure in the team, he’s a regular.”
-
EMMANUEL FRIMPONG has claimed Arsenal must finish in the top four for Unai Emery to be considered a success.
Speaking to MetaRatings: “I don't know if Emery is or isn't the right man to take Arsenal forward.
“All I know is that Arsenal players need someone to really motivate them because you can see at Liverpool, every game they are always motivated, they press every team.
“With Arsenal I feel like players are too comfortable. They have bad games and they are still selected.
“I think that he needs top four; we need to get into the Champions League this year. If we get into the Champions League this year, I think he has done well.”
-
AARON RAMSEY has made such an impact in Italy that Maurizio Sarri is preparing to change his formation to suit him.
Ramsey was forced to wait for his chance to shine at Juventus as the hamstring injury suffered last season took longer than hoped to heal.
But the former Arsenal star has shone in the two games he has played since finally making his debut – so much so Sarri wants to make him his main man in midfield.
Having scored in his first game for the Italian champions, the Wales star has quickly become a major hit with the club's fans.
Source: Read Full Article