“I knew he has all the abilities to do everything but there’s one thing he did yesterday which really shocked me and now beginning to believe we’ll defeat Real Madrid”: Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice believes Arsenal will knockout Real Madrid because of what one player did against Fulham yesterday
Declan Rice has hailed the performance of one of Arsenal’s best players against Fulham and claims he is ‘loved by everyone’ at the club.
Arsenal’s win over Fulham only managed to close the gap on Liverpool down to nine points, but the Gunners did their job ahead of tonight’s Merseyside derby.
Goals from Mikel Merino and the returning Bukayo Saka secured a crucial three points for Mikel Arteta’s side, with Rodrigo Muniz pulling one back late on for the visitors.
After the win at the Emirates Stadium, Rice was full of praise for one of the team’s attackers who has returned from injury in fine form.
Declan Rice hails Gabriel Martinelli’s performance vs Fulham
Declan Rice believes that Gabriel Martinelli was ‘unbelievable’ against Fulham and he has been so impressed by his form since returning from injury.
Martinelli, whose performance was also hailed by Frank Leboeuf, has just returned from a hamstring issue which sidelined him for several weeks, however, he has returned in superb form.
The 23-year-old did very well to set up Bukayo Saka’s goal as he drove the ball forward from just inside Fulham’s half before combining well with Mikel Merino.
Rice told Sky Sports: “All of our front players are so different to each other and they rotate so well, Ethan’s (Nwaneri) coming through and Martinelli was unbelievable tonight!”
When asked about Martinelli returning from injury in ‘red hot’ form, he added: “Yeah, because of his mentality and how he works every day – he’s loved by everyone. Tonight, he was a real outlet for us and really did well for Bukayo’s goal.”
There has been talk over recent weeks that Arsenal are open to selling Martinelli, but his form since returning might make them think twice.
Gabriel Martinelli’s assist for Bukayo Saka’s goal vs Fulham
Arsenal fans claimed that was Martinelli’s best performance in a long time as he took his goal contribution tally to nine for the season.
The winger picked up the ball just inside the Fulham half before driving at their defence to then link up with Merino.
The Spaniard then drilled the ball across the goal to pick out Martinelli, who wonderfully stuck out a leg to divert the ball to the back post for Saka to turn home.
