Gabriel Martinelli has broken his silence after receiving a yellow card for his actions towards an injured Conor Bradley during Thursday night’s clash.
The Arsenal winger came off the bench in the second half of the goalless draw with Liverpool as the league leaders searched for a late winner. However, the Brazilian became the centre of controversy in stoppage time when Bradley went down with what appeared to be a serious injury.
The Liverpool defender collapsed in pain while trying to clear a loose ball, immediately clutching his knee. Believing Bradley was delaying the restart, Martinelli lightly dropped the ball on him before attempting to usher him off the pitch to continue play. His actions sparked an angry reaction from several Liverpool players, leading to a brief confrontation.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Gary Neville strongly criticised Martinelli, describing his behaviour as “disgraceful” and labelling the forward an “idiot.” He also expressed surprise that no Liverpool player reacted more aggressively.
Roy Keane echoed those sentiments, calling the incident “an absolute disgrace,” having experienced a similar situation himself in the past.
Bradley was eventually stretchered off, covering his face, and was replaced by Joe Gomez for the closing moments at the Emirates. Later, Martinelli released a statement on Instagram, revealing he had contacted Bradley to apologise and wish him a swift recovery.
He wrote: “Conor and I have messaged and I’ve already apologised to him. In the heat of the moment, I didn’t realise the injury was serious. I’m truly sorry for how I reacted and I wish Conor a quick recovery.”
Liverpool boss Arne Slot was asked about both the injury and Martinelli’s conduct after the match. He chose not to criticise the Arsenal winger, insisting Martinelli would not have acted that way had he known the severity of the injury.
“I’m completely certain that if he had understood how serious it was, he would never have done that,” Slot told the BBC. “It doesn’t look good if the injury is as bad as we fear, but time-wasting and diving have happened against us many times this season, so I can see why he may have thought that was the case.”
The draw leaves Arsenal six points clear of Manchester City and Aston Villa at the top of the Premier League table.
