The Arsenal evening headlines for Wednesday, April 1.
Gabriel Martinelli hints at international future
As the breakout star of Arsenal’s season, the fight to secure Gabriel Martinelli’s international future is hotting up, but the young striker has now hinted at which country he will choose to play for.
Born in Guarulhos, Sao Paulo, Martinelli is also eligible to represent Italy, but has told media in the country of his birth that he is keen on the idea of playing for Brazil, describing it as a “dream.”
“I am happy for the recognition, for the idea of my name in the Brazilian team,” Martinelli told Brazilian media. “It is a dream that I have had since I started playing football.
"There is still no final decision, but, certainly, representing my country is a privilege that would honour me a lot.”
Martinelli, who has already played for Brazil’s Under-23 side, has scored 10 goals and contributed four assists in 26 appearances for Arsenal this season.
Ian Wright picks his 10 Premier League goalkeepers of all time
Renowned for putting the ball in the back of the net, Ian Wright has turned his eye to the players charged with keeping the ball out, picking his 10 best Premier League goalkeepers of all time.
The former Arsenal striker and Alan Shearer were asked by the Match of the Day podcast to list their favourite shot stoppers with Wright ranking Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel ahead of his former Gunners teammate David Seaman.
Wright also selected Ederson ahead of Alisson Becker as the best goalkeeper currently playing in the Premier League with David de Gea also making his top 10.
Wright explains why he ‘hated’ Peter Schmeichel
Arsenal legend Wright might have picked Schmeichel as the best goalkeeper of the Premier League era in the aforementioned podcast, but he went on to reveal the frosty relationship he had with the Dane.
The two players came to blows during the 1996/97 season when Wright ran through on goal and collided with Schmeichel after being flagged offside. The Gunners striker was only awarded a yellow card for his part.
Speaking on the Match of the Day podcast, Wright provided some context. "I didn't try to snap him, all I did in that particular incident was jump on the ball,” he said.
“I was a little bit wound up at the time, Peter said a couple of things I didn't find very nice - a couple of unsavoury things.”
Wright went on to admit that his inability to score against the Manchester United goalkeeper was part of his frustration, commenting: “We laugh about it - when we speak about it, we always talk about how much I genuinely hated him as a goalkeeper.”
