Man Utd missed four chances to sign Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli

Manchester United missed the opportunity to sign Gabriel Martinelli on four different occasions when the Arsenal star was still in the formative stage of his career.

The Brazilian’s stock is on the rise again having featured prominently during Arsenal’s impressive run of form which has pulled Mikel Arteta’s side to within touching distance of a Champions League qualifying place.

Martinelli shot to prominence during his first season in north London when he was a virtual unknown having been signed on the recommendation of prolific scout Francis Cagigao.

A serious knee injury sustained in training two years ago had severely stunted his progress, but he is once more to the fore and set for an increasingly prominent role during the next couple of months in light of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s departure.

Arsenal’s gain, however, has been United’s loss with Martinelli revealing he underwent four separate trials with the Gunners’ Premier League rivals during his teenage years.

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Recalling the way his move to Arsenal in the summer of 2019 was finalised, he told The Athletic: ‘Then my agent said we need to take a decision.

‘When he said Arsenal, I said, ‘OK, you do not need to say anything else, we are going to London’. My dad and I had watched the Premier League together, all the teams, like Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal and Leicester.

‘I actually had four different trials at United when I was 13, 14, 15 and 16. This was in Manchester at the club’s training base, where I played in the same age group as Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams, and I met first-team players, like Zlatan (Ibrahimovic), Paul Pogba, Wayne Rooney and