Gabriel Martinelli scores the first goal, but a foul in the buildup disallows it.
Arsenal, a team that has competed for the title with Manchester United in the past, has gotten off to a blistering start to the current season, winning an incredible eight out of their first nine games. The season is just nine games old. The weekend's triumph over Liverpool appeared like a checkpoint in the club's evolution under the management of Mikel Arteta, breaking the mental block of playing Liverpool that has resulted in dismal results across the last few years. The victory was a checkpoint in the progression of the club. As a consequence of this, many people now believe that the Gunners will be among those at the top of the table come May. This has also drawn attention to the impressive growth of a large number of young players currently in the ranks of the club.
Gabriel Martinelli, who was named man of the match, was one of those players. The Brazilian appears to have made a significant improvement from the previous season in terms of productivity and overall play. He leads the Premier League in terms of the number of dribbles he has successfully completed this year. Paying just £6 million for a winger who can compete with the best of them in an environment where teams are paying massive money for wingers is the sort of transfer transaction that can take a club from being in position to qualify for the Europa League to being in position to compete for the title. On the other hand, the forward from Ituano could have gone in a completely different direction.
In the year 2015, a young man by the name of Gabi who was born in Sao Paulo and went by the alias Carrington stepped out onto the field at the Trafford Training Centre, also known as Carrington, to take part in a training session with Manchester United. The fact that a talented Brazilian was going to be there caused a buzz of excitement throughout the club, and people were curious about the level of talent that was going to be displayed.
Due to the stringent work permit rules that were in place at the time, it was extremely rare for South American players to arrive at Carrington. This was because the rules made it nearly impossible to sign teenage prospects from the continent. On the other hand, this particular instance was unique because the player had a chance of obtaining an Italian passport through his father's side of the family, which would give him the freedom to travel anywhere within the European Union (EU).
Gabi had a hard time making an impact because he was frequently pushed off the ball and, in many instances, was unable to compete with physically imposing defenders. In spite of this, the forward displayed flashes of brilliance, which were sufficient for United to offer further trials, which continued to take place year after year. The striker, who was then 14 years old but had since turned 15, went back on trial in October 2016 and got his first taste of English football when he started for the under-16 team in a match that ended in a 1-1 draw away at Middlesbrough. Again, it was difficult to make an impact on physically imposing defenders; however, there was no question that there were impressive attributes present that would encourage staff members at the club.
Fast forward to July 2017, when the striker showed up once more in Manchester to take part in the under-18s' squad pre season. He made his debut as a substitute in the 60th minute of the away game against Lincoln, which the team won 2-0. A decision was taken by United to not pursue the signing of Gabi. This was understandable due to the relatively large fee that his hometown club, Ituano, demanded for his services. In addition, there was already a great deal of attacking talent within the youth ranks, and the impact that his signing could have on the progression of those players' careers was also a consideration. It is important to note that Barcelona had provided the Brazilian with opportunities to compete in similar trials, and they had also arrived at the same conclusion.
What seemed like a responsible decision at the time for United’s hierarchy has since aged badly with Arsenal proving to be the beneficiary. Only a year later, he was participating in trials with Arsenal, where he later excelled, which led to the club shelling out £6 million to acquire the youngster from the Brazilian team Ituano, who played in the fourth division.
Manchester United 2017 trialist Gabriel Martinelli
The decision not to sign Martinelli could, in the long run, open up additional options for Alejandro Garnacho. The Argentina youth international is only eighteen years old, but he has already shown tremendous promise in cameo appearances and in the successful FA Youth Cup run that Manchester United's younger players had just the year before. In some respects, United can model their plan for Martinelli after the one that Arsenal has for him, with the expectation that he will be able to make comparable levels of growth. Despite this, it is highly improbable that this will occur without significant playing time, and it is possible that Garnacho will be sent out on loan before being given a serious shot in the first team squad.
It is indisputable that United made a mistake when they passed up the opportunity to sign Martinelli, despite the fact that there are a great number of questions regarding the disparity in development at the two different clubs that cannot be answered. When compared to the other transfer fees, six million pounds represents a negligible risk for clubs of this size.
Given the relative obscurity surrounding Martinelli's talents at such a high level in the South American football pyramid, United can, at the very least, take heart in the fact that their talent identification units are operating effectively. This provides them with cause for optimism. Despite this, they need to take the lessons learned from these occurrences to heart and make it a priority to provide Garnacho with the maximum amount of support and assistance necessary for him to fill the role of the man they lost out on.
