Arsenal struck gold on Emery signing whose value has skyrocketed 1333%

In recent years, Arsenal’s transfer dealings have included many more hits than misses, with the likes of Martin Odegaard, Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale proving to be worth every penny the club paid for them.

Of course, there have still been odd misses here and there, such as Nicolas Pepe and potentially Kai Havertz, if he doesn’t improve towards the backend of the campaign, but the trend is undeniably positive for the Gunners.

However, there is one signing the club have made in the post-Wenger era that remains unmatched in terms of value for money, and has a shout for being one of the best value signings in the entire Premier League over the last five years.

The player in question has seen his value skyrocket 1333% since moving to N5, has established himself as one of the club’s most important players, and was signed by Unai Emery.

Gabriel Martinelli’s valuation at Ituano

The player in question is obviously Brazilian wonderkid Gabriel Martinelli, who Arsenal signed for just £6m from Brazilian fourth-tier outfit Ituano Futebol Clube in the summer of 2019.

At the time, he was a relative unknown to football fans in England but had been making a name for himself in his homeland and left Ituano with six goals and three assists to his name.

His form in Brazil also caught the national set-up’s eye, and he was invited to a May training camp with the full squad before his move to Arsenal was announced.

There was clearly an element of excitement around the tricky forward early on, but his full potential wouldn’t be clear until he started playing regularly for Arsenal.

Gabriel Martinelli’s valuation at Arsenal

Martinelli’s first appearance for the club came in the first game of the 2019/20 Premier League season – a 1-0 win away to Newcastle United – but he only came on for the last six minutes.

Emery finally gave him his first league start in gameweek 16, and he repaid the Spaniard by scoring his first league goal for the club in a 3-1 away win over West Ham United. Unfortunately, injuries to his hamstring and knee shortly after meant he missed most of the season and a large portion of the 2020/21 campaign.

However, it was just a few weeks before his serious knee injury that the young “monster”, as journalist Mark Mann-Bryans described him, scored the goal against Chelsea that made rival fans stand up and take notice, a goal that saw him run the length of Stamford Bridge, beat N’Golo Kante and equalise for the Gunners all on his own.

Once he returned to full fitness, the wing wizard quickly became an indispensable cog in Mikel Arteta’s first team, as his tireless running, eye for goal and selflessness in the build-up made him a threat whenever the Gunners were on the ball.

In his first full season back, the 5 foot 10 dynamo managed to score six goals and provide six assists in just 29 Premier League appearances, giving him a goal involvement every 2.41 games, but it was last year, at 21 years old, that he truly became one of the deadliest attackers in English football.

In 36 league appearances, the “incredible” Brazilian, as Arteta dubbed him, scored 15 goals and provided five assists, and came agonisingly close to winning the league for his troubles, and while he might not be quite as prolific this season, he’s still contributing to the team.

This string of impactful seasons in north London, combined with his age profile and future potential, has led to the CIES Football Observatory valuing the exciting 22-year-old at around €100m, which is about £86m, or a 1333% increase on the £6m he was signed for.

Ultimately, Martinelli’s move to Arsenal has been an unequivocal success both from a football perspective and a business one and if he can help fire the Gunners to a league title, his value might soar yet higher.