Gabriel Martinelli celebrates scoring against Crystal Palace in the Premier League | Getty ImagesGabriel Martinelli celebrates scoring against Crystal Palace in the Premier League | Getty Images
Gabriel Martinelli celebrates scoring against Crystal Palace in the Premier League | Getty Images | AFP via Getty Images
Arsenal and Crystal Palace will hope to challenge in the 2025/26 Champions League and Europa League respectively
However, the uncertainty of the Eagles’ participation in Europe mirrors the questions marks over their playing squad for 2025/26 with all of their biggest stars the subject of major transfer speculation this summer.
Eberechi Eze, Marc Guehi and Jean-Philippe Mateta are all inside the last two years of their deals at Selhurst Park while Adam Wharton is also a highly-prized asset after his meteoric rise in the last 18 months, so Glasner always looked set to lose one or two of them regardless of his European dreams.
With just a year left on his contract, Guehi looks the most likely to depart this summer for at least £50 million with almost all of England’s Champions League teams plus Manchester United intent on capturing the 24-year-old.
The Athletic reports Mikel Arteta is keen on capturing Guehi especially after missing out on Dean Hujisen to Real Madrid, and he could possess a secret weapon to aid that pursuit - Gabriel Martinelli.
Marc Guehi solves two problems for Arsenal
So if everyone and their grandma agrees Arsenal’s biggest need this transfer window is a striker, why should they splash out on an in-demand defender?
Well, Arsenal ran into major problems last season when teams blocked up the middle of the pitch and pressed high when Rice and Odegaard were forced deeper to collect the ball, pushing the Gunners’ build-up play wide way too early and making it incredibly difficult to move the ball into the opposition penalty area with any real purpose.
The well-documented issue of not having a striker didn’t exactly help in the biggest matches, but over the course of the season Arteta’s four main centre forwards Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard, Mikel Merino and Gabriel Jesus actually outperformed their collective expected goals by 8.5 goals in all competitions, a not insignificant amount. By contrast, Manchester United’s main attackers left almost 10 non-penalty goals on the table outside of Amad Diallo so things could be a lot worse.
The expected signing of Martin Zubimendi is a genius piece of business as the Spaniard is one of the best holding midfielders in the world at taking the ball in midfield under pressure from the opposition press, evading his man and making a progressive pass even in a not overly offensive Real Sociedad that joint-third worst attack in La Liga this season.
Boasting a take-on success rate that ranks in the top eight percent among midfielders (not just holding midfielders) in Europe’s top five leagues this season, Zubimendi should eliminate the need for Rice or Odegaard needing to drop back into a double-pivot, the way Ryan Gravenberch has transformed Liverpool’s availability to play through the press.
Likewise, Marc Guehi is one of the best ball-playing centre-backs in the league and Arsenal could expect him to have a similar impact to Zubimendi - Guehi’s passing numbers speak for themselves as he was in the top 10 or 15% of Premier League centre-backs for goals and assists, key passes (passes leading directly to a shot) and through balls.
These would all likely rise further in a more possession-based side like Arsenal, with Guehi comfortable stepping into midfield if required and moonlighting there effectively.
In effect, the double-signing of Zubimendi and Guehi would push two or three players into attacking areas without sacrificing any defensive solidity. Guehi is one of the best defenders in the Premier League when the ball is on the floor and while he’s not so adept in the air, Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba are more than capable of covering in that regard.
Renowned as one of the foremost defensive partnerships in world football, the pair actually combined to miss 19 games last season through injuries. And if all three are fit they could still dovetail nicely in the same starting XI, allowing Mikel Arteta more flexibility. After all, Ben White had played centrally in 94% of his senior appearances before arriving at the Emirates but has played at right-back for two-thirds of his Gunners career. And with Guehi heavily discounted this summer, the lower risk makes such a punt even more attractive.
Gabriel Martinelli can take Eze mantle at Palace
Glasner is on the lookout for an upgrade to his attack and was initially chasing Rayan Cherki, before he was swamped by Manchester City, who signed the 21-year-old for £30.45m. That means the Eagles must reset, but there may be another strong candidate right on their doorstep with Arsenal hunting a world-class left-winger like Rodrygo, Neco Williams or Anthony Gordon to bolster their front line.
Leandro Trossard will remain an able deputy on the flank but Martinelli has fallen down the Arsenal pecking order since returning 21 goals and assists in his stellar 2022/23 Premier League campaign. Yet aged just 23, Martinelli still has a lot to give in the Premier League and a move to Selhurst Park could be just what he needs to rejuvenate his career.
Martinelli is a more direct player than Eze, consistently returning more goals than assists, but provides a similar threat when looking to beat a man and the Olympic gold medallist’s blistering pace would be a major asset on the counter too.
Wages could be an obstacle but already seeing more limited opportunities for Brazil, Martinelli could well be at a crossroads in his career where the need to maximise his long-term earnings trumps short-term greed and being able to remain in London would be a plus.
Bringing in Martinelli plus potentially a sweetener of up to 10m would then allow Palace to shop Eze to the highest bidder and reinvest those funds in defence, or strike an even more lucrative swap plus cash deal with Chelsea to bring Trevoh Chalobah back to Selhurst Park on a permanent basis.
That plugs two major holes in the team while turning a profit and improves their prospects of keeping Wharton and Mateta, potentially a win for all parties.
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