Ian Wright slams Arsenal star for ‘switching off’ after brutal Mikel Arteta snub

Arsenal winger Gabriel Martinelli had an afternoon to forget on Sunday as the Gunners fell to a 2-0 home defeat by Aston Villa

.With title rivals Liverpool losing at home to Crystal Palace earlier on in the afternoon, Mikel Arteta’s men had the chance to put some daylight between themselves and the Reds. Instead, it is now Manchester City that lead the three-horse race for the title, with a two-pointt advantage over both of them.

For all of Arsenal’s first-half dominance, two late goals from Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins resigned the Gunners to just their second league defeat at the Emirates this term. Martinelli started the game on the bench, with Leandro Trossard a surprise inclusion ahead of the Brazilian.

However, some felt Martinelli actually played a part in Villa’s opening goal. One of those people included Arsenal legend Ian Wright, who criticised the 22-year-old for “switching off” in the build-up to Bailey’s decisive strike.

Martinelli did seem to have a lapse in concentration which in turn allowed Bailey to make a run for the back post and slot home from close range to put Villa in front. While analysing the goal, Wright highlighted Martinelli’s poor defensive awareness.

“Look at Martinelli, this is what we’ve been saying because Arsenal have been so good defensively this season,” he told Premier League Productions. “Everyone has been switched on but in this instance he switches off.

“Bailey is his man, that’s his man in this situation. He has to get closer to him, it’s as simple as that. Arsenal gave Villa too many opportunities late on and they took them.

“Martinelli switches off at the back post. He realised too late. That’s the difference. The margins are so small and the same thing happened against Bayern, a couple of lapses in concentration and they were punished.”

As mentioned, the fact that Martinelli wasn’t on from the start was certainly a talking point among Arsenal fans ahead of kick-off. It was also something put to Arteta during his own post-match media duties.

Asked what his thinking was and whether Martinelli was fit enough to play the full 90 minutes, Arteta was somewhat frosty in his response. “Because I’m the manager and I decide the line up,” he replied.

The Gunners boss refused to give up hopes on the title just yet, claiming more twists and turns could still be on the way. Arteta added: “That’s a possibility, that’s the reality right now.

“It was the same a few months back, we knew that this moment could come. Now it’s about reacting and keep believing and doing what we can.”