Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli was branded ‘disgraceful’ after trying to push injured Liverpool player Conor Bradley off the pitch near the end of the 0-0 draw on Thursday.
Bradley fell awkwardly near the touchline in stoppage time and Martinelli clearly thought he was time-wasting, throwing the ball at him before manhandling him.
Liverpool’s players reacted angrily and after the ensuing melee, Martinelli and Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate were booked.
Northern Ireland full back Bradley was eventually taken off the field on a stretcher in obvious distress.
Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said Martinelli’s actions had left him fuming.
“You cannot do that. That is so poor. I think an apology is needed,” the former Manchester United defender said.
"I'm 100 per cent sure that if he knew what the injury might be, that he would never do that."🤷🏻♂️
Arne Slot REACTS to the incident between Gabriel Martinelli and Conor Bradley at the end of Liverpool's goalless draw with Arsenal🗣️ pic.twitter.com/ZOCAo9FQaO
— Hayters TV (@HaytersTV) January 9, 2026
“Bradley is being stretchered off. I’m fuming with Martinelli, to be honest. Disgraceful. I’m surprised a Liverpool player hasn’t gone over and whacked Martinelli there!”
Fellow pundit Roy Keane also criticised the Brazilian forward.
“I didn’t like it. It’s happened to me when I was badly injured and a player stood over me, and it’s not good,” Keane said.
“I’m surprised the Liverpool players didn’t react to Martinelli more. I think that behaviour is an absolute disgrace. Not good scenes.”
Liverpool manager Arne Slot said he “feared the worst” for Bradley, although he was measured in his criticism of Martinelli.
“I am 100% sure that if he knew what the injury might be, he wouldn’t do that,” the Dutchman said. “But it doesn’t look great if Bradley has the injury we think he has.
“You don’t like to see a player being moved if he might have an injury.”
"It's even worse than disrespectful"
Daniel Sturridge and Roy Keane react to Gabriel Martinelli's actions in the final minutes of Arsenal vs Liverpool. pic.twitter.com/K7vLrnn6iD
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 8, 2026
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said Martinelli would never have tried to move Bradley if he thought he was injured.
“Probably he doesn’t know because knowing Gabi, there is zero intention,” the Spaniard said.
“I don’t know what happened to Conor, but hopefully it’s not bad, but obviously, there is no intention from Gabi to do anything bad to him.”
Slot said their goalless draw underlines the struggles they have had with teams deploying a low block this season. Defending champions Liverpool failed to register a shot on target in a Premier League fixture for the first time since a match against Wigan Athletic in March 2010, bringing a run of 600 league games to an end.
Slot told Sky Sports their inability to break teams down had cost them all season.
“I’ve said 150 times already that against certain playing styles, we’re a very good team, and against certain playing styles we struggle,” said.
“Maybe you could even see that — though people are now positive we kept the ball so long — but even against the low block of Arsenal, we struggled to create chances. So that is something we would like to do better.
“That’s one of the reasons we’re so many points behind them.”
Arsenal are six points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa while Liverpool remain fourth, 14 points adrift despite a nine-game unbeaten run.
“You’re hoping to create even more chances, but against an Arsenal team that has great momentum, to put a performance like this is something I’m very positive about.
— Arne Slot
Liverpool’s shots-on-target average has dropped from 6.1 last season to just four this campaign, though Slot acknowledged his team had been up against a strong side in the league leaders.
“The only thing we missed from us, not for the first time, is the moments around the box,” he said.
“You’re hoping to create even more chances, but against an Arsenal team that has great momentum, to put a performance like this is something I’m very positive about.”
Arsenal missed the chance to go eight points clear at the top at a rain-drenched Emirates Stadium.
Mikel Arteta’s side had won seven successive home league games and were expected to take advantage of title rivals dropping points but were subdued against a Liverpool side who extended their unbeaten league run to nine games.
Injury-hit Liverpool began slowly but grew in stature and came closest to breaking the deadlock when Conor Bradley struck the crossbar in the first half.
Arsenal sent on a host of attacking substitutes after the break but to little effect as a cagey game petered out.
The draw put Arsenal six points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa while Liverpool remain fourth, 14 points adrift.
Liverpool’s next league game is against Burnley on January 17 but before that they take on Barnsley in the third round of the FA Cup on Monday.
Arsenal are away against Portsmouth in the cup on Sunday.
Reuters