Gabriel Martinelli has expressed delight with Arsenal’s performance after they reached the semifinal of the Champions League by edging Sporting CP 1-0 on aggregate in the quarter-final.
The Brazilian forward had provided the assist for Kai Havertz’s late winner in the first leg and went into the second leg with a huge chance of progressing to the next round.
While there was no goal over 90 minutes of action at the Emirates, the first leg lead was enough to send Arsenal to their second consecutive semifinal, after they also reached the same stage last season before losing to eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain.
“It feels amazing. We’re really happy with this achievement – everyone is buzzing in the dressing room and we’re really happy”, Martinelli admitted.
“We did well in the first leg of the quarter-finals and today I think we did quite well. Of course, we could have done better, but that’s football and Sporting is a really good side as well, so they did well.”
Arsenal will now face Atletico Madrid in the semifinal, after their knockout of Barcelona in their own semifinal encounter.
Both sides already faced each other during the league phase, with the Gunners claiming an emphatic 4-0 win.
“We managed to not concede and we’re through, so we’re really happy and we can’t wait to play against Atletico”, Martinelli added.
“I can’t wait to get to the game, it’s going to be another big one. Of course, we’ve played them this season, early in the season. Obviously, it’s going to be a different game. We’re looking forward to playing this game. It’s going to be another battle.
“We’re going to take what we did wrong last season to try to do right this season. We’ll go for it and we can’t wait to play them”, the Brazilian concluded.
Arsenal will now turn their attention to the Premier League this weekend, where they head to Manchester City in a potential title decider.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
