Gabriel Martinelli would welcome the addition of extra competition at Arsenal amid speculation linking the Gunners with an array of new attacking signings.
The Brazil international has been a key part of the squad assembled by Mikel Arteta that has threatened to wrestle the Premier League title away from Manchester City.
Arsenal have fell agonisingly short in each of the last two seasons, but are prepared to spend heavily again this summer in an attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and Pep Guardiola’s relentless winning machine.
Arteta was dealt a blow earlier this month when Benjamin Sesko opted to remain at RB Leipzig, but Arsenal have also been credited with interest in the likes of Alexander Isak, Jonathan Zirkee and Ivan Toney.
Asked about Arsenal’s interest in attacking reinforcements, Martinelli told AS: ‘The people who play for Arsenal, one of the best teams in the world, are very good, very good. The club has to have the best players to have a chance of being champions. We have an outstanding team, with many players of incredible quality.
‘Who defines the issue of signings is Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta. It depends on them.
‘The fans are happy when quality players come and improve the team. That issue is not our concern. We have to work on the field and leave that part of the signings to them.’
Martinelli, himself, endured a difficult campaign that was interrupted by two separate injuries and complicated by the form of Leandro Trossard whose goalscoring form saw him force his way into Arteta’s starting XI during the run-in.
The 23-year-old will hope to build up his form and fitness representing his country at the Copa America this summer and hit the ground running in pre-season with righting the wrongs of last term a huge motivator.
‘The team is sad,’ said Martinelli, reflecting on last season’s near miss.
‘Our team is very close-knit, we have family in London. We wanted to be champions, but because of what happened this year and what we did last season, we have to wait now. We wanted to win.
‘We are devastated for not getting the title, but we take what happened to us as a learning experience.
‘It is a very difficult league, the most difficult in the world. Now we have to focus and work as hard as possible to win next year.
‘We have a very young team, with still a lot of potential. Without a doubt we are going to grow much more.
We are going to fight for all the titles, the Premier, the Champions, FA Cup… People trust our work a lot. Now we have to focus on winning titles.’
