Gabriel Martinelli may not have played as many minutes as he would have liked this season, but his latest training videos have dropped a hint as to what's in store for his future.
The 19-year-old Brazilian forward emerged as a key player last season, scoring ten goals in all competitions in his breakthrough campaign.
He suffered a serious injury last June and returned to action for the Gunners in December, but has since been restricted to mostly cameo appearances off the bench.
"He wants to play all the time," said Arteta in February.
"We know him and he is disappointed when he is not playing.
"But you know that when you throw him on that pitch he is going to do his best. He had his opportunity last week against Benfica when I decided to substitute Aubameyang and give him some minutes.
"He needs to take his opportunity and if he plays he needs to perform like everybody else."
Clearly eager to show how hard he is working in training, Martinelli posted a number of videos on social media from an individual session he took part in on Tuesday afternoon.
martinelli CF training pic.twitter.com/KBuG05XaKh
— - (@AIexV2_) March 16, 2021
Gabriel Martinelli looking sharp in training today @g_martinelli01 #AFC pic.twitter.com/fyI2unGgLv
— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) March 16, 2021
It appears likely that the youngster is working on his striking prowess which isn't a huge surprise when you consider Arteta's comments about where he sees Martinelli's position long-term.
"[Aubameyang and Martinelli] are centre forwards but with the squad balance that we have at the moment, to play on those positions on the left we don’t have five players," Arteta told reporters after a 1-0 win over West Ham United a year ago.
Martinelli himself has previously admitted that he prefers playing out on the left but with the possible departure of Alexandre Lacazette this summer, the likelihood is that Martinelli will be the long-term replacement for the Frenchman.
"I really like playing on the left end," he said in 2020.
"It is my favourite position. I give myself to the maximum for the team. I always give 100% for my team to end the game winning."
