Arsenal latest: Mikel Arteta dealt huge injury blow and Gabriel Martinelli to play new role

Arsenal are set for a brief respite as they prepare to face Port Vale in the Carabao Cup third round on Wednesday night.

The Gunners have had a difficult start to the 2025/26 season, having already faced rivals Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City. Mikel Arteta's side have weathered the storm, securing four points from those matches - leaving them second in the Premier League table but trailing league leaders Liverpool by five points.

Their most recent game was a nail-biting 1-1 draw with City at the Emirates, which Arteta essentially threw the kitchen sink at in terms of his late attacking substitutions. The cup tie against Port Vale, barring an upset, is anticipated to be a less challenging occasion.

It will provide an opportunity for Arteta to rotate his squad and give game time to players like Myles Lewis, Piero Hincapie and Ben White, who haven't seen much action this season. It also presents a chance to experiment with new tactics, as we examine two major talking points surrounding the north London side ahead of the fixture.

Martinelli’s new role

Many Arsenal fans had written off Martinelli until he came off the bench to secure a win against Athletic Club in the Champions League last week. Just days later, the apparently struggling Brazilian netted a stoppage-time equaliser to rescue a draw against City.

His blistering pace against tired opposition proved decisive in both goals, whilst the second also showcased a delicate touch to lob Gianluigi Donnarumma. Those goals may just have demonstrated to Arteta the best way to harness the 24-year-old's abilities - by using him as one of his so-called 'finishers'.

Martinelli for much of the last two campaigns has been deployed as a starter on the left wing. However, Arsenal's slow, possession-heavy approach and the tactically tight nature of the opening 60 minutes means the attacker has found it difficult to influence games.

Yet, according to The Standard, Arteta has this season made the point to his players that ‘finishers’ - those who come off the bench to close out games - can be more important than starters, given the valuable depth and competition now available in the squad.

The term stems from rugby and was coined by Eddie Jones, someone Arteta has openly looked to for inspiration, when he managed England as a way of motivating players who were not starting games. Squad selection is determined by players fitting different phases of a match, with the Brazil international's electric speed perhaps meaning we'll witness more of him in the closing stages of fixtures.

Team-mate Declan Rice's comments following last weekend's game suggested as much, having stated: "When you come off the bench, at that point of the game, 60, 70, 80 minutes, the game’s a completely different game to the start of the game.

"The game’s opened up, it’s more stretched. And for players like Gabi, they’re unbelievable when they do start, but when they come on, their strength, which is their pace, their dribbling, helps them massively because there’s so much space."

Gunners suffer Madueke setback

Just as Bukayo Saka returned to the squad to face City, Arsenal were dealt a huge blow when his in-form replacement and England team-mate Noni Madueke had to be taken off at half time. The 23-year-old winger battled through discomfort in the first half, having sustained an issue early in the match.

Following scans on Monday, it was confirmed that £48.5million summer signing Madueke will be sidelined for two months, with his return anticipated in November. Madueke's problem is only the latest in a lengthy catalogue of injuries to Arteta's squad early in the campaign, with Saka, Ben White, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Christian Norgaard already sidelined for a considerable portion of matches.

What makes the news even more concerning is that Madueke had made an impressive start following his switch from Chelsea and had arguably been the Gunners' standout performer across the opening six fixtures of the season. His extended spell on the sidelines will likely lead to increased playing time for 15-year-old sensation Max Dowman on the right wing.

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