Arsenal’s Brazilian forward pair Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus have attracted concrete interest from Atletico Madrid ahead of the summer, with TEAMtalk reporting that Diego Simeone’s side has approached intermediaries regarding both players.
Neither forward is considered untouchable at the Emirates Stadium. Both have fallen behind in Arteta’s attacking hierarchy this season — Jesus particularly has been limited by injuries and form, while Martinelli’s contract situation, with only a year plus an optional further year remaining, creates leverage for a sale.
Arsenal “would not stand in their way should they wish to leave,” according to the TEAMtalk report, which frames the exits as realistic outcomes that the club has made peace with rather than transfers being driven hard by the players themselves.
The Atletico interest is credible in profile terms. Simeone’s system demands high-intensity wide forwards with pressing capacity and a capacity to score ugly goals — a description that fits Martinelli particularly well at his best.
For Arteta, the departures would clear wage space and create room for the significant attacking additions being planned for the summer. The Anthony Gordon pursuit from Newcastle and the ongoing Kvaratskhelia admiration both depend in part on the financial room created by moving on players who are no longer central to the first-team picture.
Jesus’s situation is somewhat more complex. The Brazilian cost Arsenal £45 million from Manchester City in 2022 and has been a frustrating figure at the club — brilliant in stretches but unable to maintain form and availability across a full season. Selling him at a reasonable fee would be a reasonable piece of business given the trajectory.
Whether Atletico follow interest with a formal offer will depend partly on whether Simeone stays beyond this season, with his own future at the club carrying a degree of uncertainty heading into the summer.
