The agent of Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli has revealed that the forward was sad about missing out on a move to Manchester United.
The Brazilian ace had four separate trials with United as a teenager and he even played in a friendly for the club’s Under 18s.
He subsequently spent a fortnight with Barcelona but the La Liga giants were likewise not interested in securing his services.
Speaking to The Athletic, his representative Luiz Antonio Moraes has revealed that Martinelli was sad when the United move did not work out.
He added that the disappointment did not last long and he kept working hard before his switch to the Gunners in 2019.
He said: “He was sad when the United move didn’t work out, but it didn’t last long. But he just kept working. Maybe even more than before. Ga is a great example for all young players. Things never went to his head.”
Arsenal have benefitted from United’s decision on Martinelli
The Red Devils had a wonderful opportunity to sign Martinelli from Brazilian side Ituano. However, they were not convinced over his potential.
The decision has benefitted the Gunners in the end. Martinelli had a good start to his Arsenal career before suffering a serious knee injury.
He was out of the reckoning for a while but transformed his fortunes during the back end of the 2021/22 season. He is now an undisputed starter when fit.
The €80 million-rated star recently scored the winner for the Gunners against Manchester City. The victory ended their 12-match losing league streak versus City.
Martinelli is not the first emerging star that the Mancunian giants have decided against signing. They previously missed out on Moises Caicedo too.
In our view, the club must be better with his decision-making in this aspect. Hopefully, they will recruit top talents before their rivals in the near future.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
