Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta has admitted that he was “hurt” by an “emotional decision” on one player ahead of his side’s match against Athletic Bilbao.
The Gunners got off to a winning start in the Champions League on Tuesday night, beating Athletic Bilbao 2-0 thanks to goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.
Injuries prevented Arsenal from fielding their best XI and they were far from their best against Athletic Bilbao, but Martinelli and Trossard made the difference off the bench with late goals.
Martinelli started on the bench as Arteta decided to start summer signing Eberechi Eze, who produced very little before being withdrawn.
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Martinelli, meanwhile, made an instant impact as he scored with one of his first touches and speaking post-match, Arteta admitted that he “adores” the winger.
“Fully deserved it. I adore Gabriel. His attitude, his commitment, his positivity, what he’s willing to do for the team,” Arteta said.
“As a family, we certainly value all the qualities that he has, and he brings to the team.”
Arteta also said he was expecting a positive reaction from Martinelli after Eze started ahead of him on the left wing.
He added: “I was sure that Gabby was going to react like that. You raise the level to Gabby and he was going to do that.
“He has such a mentality. He’s a player that is constantly willing to learn and he broke himself, buried the money with himself. And that’s the moment that hopefully is going to give him the confidence again to go, because he’s an outstanding player.”
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Arteta has also acknowledged that it “hurt” him to remove Martinelli from Arsenal’s starting XI.
“It’s always very difficult emotionally to leave players out,” Arteta added.
“I know how much they want to play this competition and what it means to them, and every time you’re in the line-up, you are disappointing a lot of players.
“They know how I feel about them, so they know that when I have to leave a player on the bench or out of the squad, it hurts me. And starting from there, the only thing I can do is my job.
“I have to make decisions, and I have to make decisions based on increasing the probability of winning football matches, and they know that that’s the only reason why I’m going to make certain decisions. Sometimes right, sometimes wrong, and they have to stay like that.”
