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Football London
Football London
Sport
Joe Doyle & Art De Roche

Arsenal behind the scenes: Gabriel Martinelli's utilisation and Mikel Arteta's summer plans

While it may be all quiet on the pitch for the last few weeks at the Emirates Stadium, there is still a lot going on away from the playing field.

Which gave writer Art de Roche plenty to talk about during a Facebook live video on Friday afternoon.

Art was asked about Gabriel Martinelli's utilisation and Mikel Arteta's plans for his team in defence.

"As an 18-year-old, you can't really expect too much from [Martinelli] in terms of getting regular minutes. I think how he's handed the move to England has been exceptional, really.

Art de Roche's full Arsenal Q&A

"In terms of the way he's been utilised, I think he's had almost the perfect season; he came in without too much expectation and he went into the Europa League squad - that's what anyone would have expected really for him to get his first minutes.

"He played central in those first few games and after that he moved out to the left. Even though he is a central striker, he was quite useful off the left and that is something that should be encouraged moving forward.

"Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is often used off the left, so Gabriel Martinelli has been showing that he can do that as well. If he doesn't get an opening through the middle in future seasons, then he can be a good option to have off that left-hand side because he is smart enough and physical enough - even though he's not the biggest guy.

"I'd say [there will not be] a total reorganisation in defence. I think are too many moving parts in defence for Arsenal to have a total shuffle of the pack.

"There are six centre-backs at the club in the first team right now, excluding William Saliba and Konstantinos Mavropanos, so when they come back [from loan deals] it's going to be eight.

"[Of that eight], Sokratis, [Shkodran] Mustafi and David Luiz will all be entering the final 12 months of their contracts this summer. For me, personally, those are the players that need action more quickly than the others.

"With the amount of centre-backs at the club, that could make Arsenal's decision on those players easier, especially in the case of Mustafi, who has been open about the option of leaving Arsenal in the past."

You can watch the entire Q&A in the video at the top of this story.

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