In the opening minutes of the match against the Toffees at Goodison Park, Martinelli displayed exceptional skill. He even managed to slip past the home defence to score in the 20th minute, a goal that would later be overturned by video assistant referee Eddie Nketiah’s offside ruling.
After scoring that offside goal, Martinelli immediately collapsed to the ground and was taken out; Leandro Trossard, who would ultimately win the game, came off the bench to replace him.
When asked about Martinelli’s health at a press conference following the victory, Arteta replied that tests will be required to ascertain the seriousness of the injuries.
“He felt it after the action for the run on the goal, and normally he’s not one of the players to have muscular issues, but he had to come off, so let’s see,” the manager said.
In addition, Arteta expressed his relief at seeing Arsenal win at Goodison Park for the first time in more than six years and argued that his team “fully deserved to win the game.”
Six years without a victory here is a long time, so we had to absorb some lessons and get better, he said. The manner we won it, the way we played, how dominant we were, and the presence we shown on the pitch especially make me happy. We had every right to win the game.
“I believe we had a lot more opportunities to cross the ball into the final line, find a player in the box, and score. Everton deserves praise for how well they blocked when we opened them up and for how brilliantly they defended the box. It’s wonderful to have additional scoring options because it provides you access to more resources and makes you unpredictable.
With the victory, the Gunners, who have now earned 13 of a possible 15 points through the first five weeks of the Premier League season, climb into the top four.