Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli has been one of the standout players in the Premier League this season but the Brazil international could have been playing for Manchester United if things had gone just a little differently, he has admitted.
Martinelli joined Arsenal in 2019 and has slowly integrated himself into the first team at the Emirates Stadium since then and is now a permanent fixture on Mikel Arteta’s teamsheet.
The 21-year-old’s move to Europe came after a dazzling campaign for Brazilian outfit Ituano, who are now playing in the second tier in Brazil.
Now, after being called up to represent Brazil at this winter’s World Cup in Brazil, the forward has revealed that he was rejected by United and Barcelona before eventually joining Arsenal.
“I used to be part of this project at Manchester United. I was actually there for several trials. I even met many of the senior players,” Martinelli wrote for The Players Tribune.
“When I was 17, I had my last session there, so I went back to Brazil waiting for news. One day my dad called me into the living room. He had spoken to my agent and … well, United had said no.
“Not just, “No, for this year. But, “No, we don’t want him. At all. To be honest, I was shaken. They had seen me play several times, and I was sure they were going to sign me, you know?
“A few weeks later I got another trial, at Barcelona. I spent 15 days there. They didn’t want me either. That was easier to accept, because it was just one trial. Still…. I remember sitting down with my dad and saying: “What are we going to do?”
SN’s verdict…
There are many tales of top players failing trials before eventually landing at a club where it all clicked and in Martinelli’s case, is seems like that happened at Arsenal. Going by the timeline Martinelli has presented, it would seem like his trial at United was during Jose Mourinho’s reign at the club.
Martinelli is originally a striker and that’s an area United have lacked firepower in for several years, with Romelu Lukaku being the only long-term signing made in that department for many years.
His development at Arsenal has been staggering and there’s no guarantee that he would have been able to do it at United.
