and Liverpool star is his toughest opponent

Jurgen Klopp loved 'talent of the century' - and Liverpool star is his toughest opponent

Jurgen Klopp considered Gabriel Martinelli 'a talent of the century' but the Arsenal forward has picked one Liverpool star as his toughest opponent

Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp (Image: Getty Images )

Gabriel Martinelli has been a regular scourge for Liverpool since joining Arsenal in a £6m deal from Ituano in July 2019. The Reds are the Brazil international’s favourite opposition, on an individual basis at least, after all.

The 23-year-old has scored five goals from 11 meetings with Liverpool. Also registering two assists, the Reds are the side he has scored most against and delivered the most overall goal contributions against in his career to date.

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While he has only tasted victory against Liverpool twice, he did score in both of the aforementioned wins in October 2022 and February 2024. Given such exploits against the Reds, it is perhaps no surprise that former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is a big fan of the Brazilian.

The first time the German crossed paths with Martinelli, the forward was only 18 years old. Yet that didn’t stop him scoring a brace in a 5-5 League Cup draw at Anfield, with Klopp going on to laud the youngster as a "talent of the century".

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“Martinelli's pretty much the same age (as my young team) but he's a talent of the century, he's an incredible striker, so it's really difficult,” Klopp said. “He's really unbelievable

"So young, looks so mature already, is a proper threat. Yeah, he looks like a really decent player.

"I didn't want to put any backpack [pressure] on his back with this thing but I just really like good football players and obviously he's a very good one."

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Martinelli was proud to be on the receiving end of such praise, telling Marca: “I feel very proud that one of the best tacticians in the world speaks well of me.”

In 2022 after Liverpool beat Arsenal in the League Cup semi-finals, Klopp said of the Brazilian: "Little Martinelli, we will talk about this player in the future, I can promise. If he is without major injuries, he will have a proper career."

Fast forward a season and with Arsenal having emerged as Premier League title contenders, Klopp then said of Martinelli: "Martinelli, very early on I was excited about him. He’s become exactly the player I expected. He deserves everything coming his way."

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A player who regularly comes up against Trent Alexander-Arnold, the forward has caused the England international problems at times. But in a previous defence of his former Liverpool vice-captain, Klopp pointed out: "Martinelli is such a talented boy. It's really tricky.”

Yet, the Reds have clearly found a way to get the better of the Brazilian, given their superior record in recent head-to-head meetings, having won five of their 11 encounters.

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Perhaps one reason for that is a player Martinelli himself considers his toughest opponent? While he might get the better of Alexander-Arnold at times, cutting in from the left, he then still has to find a way past Ibrahima Konate!

“It has to be Walker and Konate from Liverpool,” the 23-year-old recently told Men in Blazers when asked which Premier League defenders are the toughest to get past. “They are both tough to beat.”

Konate has been in incredible form for Liverpool this season, making 16 appearances in all competitions - scoring two goals - after re-establishing himself in the Reds starting XI under Arne Slot.

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While unable to keep a clean sheet away at Arsenal last month, the Frenchman was rated as Liverpool’s man of the match in the ECHO’s player ratings , with Ian Doyle awarded the centre-back a nine out of 10.

“Easily Liverpool’s most impressive player and defended on the front foot with a succession of good challenges and interceptions,” he wrote of the 25-year-old.

That perhaps goes some way to explaining why Martinelli had a rare off-day against the Reds, and was handed a joint-lowest rating of six out of 10 in Football.London’s equivalent player ratings piece.

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“Loves playing against Liverpool but had one of his quieter afternoons against them,” Kaya Kaynak wrote. “Worked tirelessly but didn't have the finesse in the final third."

Despite returning three goals and two assists from his previous four starts against the Reds - including in successive home encounters - Martinelli was unable to make it an Emirates hat-trick.

Admittedly, he is enduring a quiet season by his own standards, returning only three goals and three assists from 17 outings so far during the campaign. Compare that to a career-best 15 goals and six assists in 2022/23 when Klopp declared the Brazilian had become ‘exactly the player he expected’.

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But that’s taking nothing away from Liverpool and the superb form of Konate so far this season under Slot. If Martinelli was a ‘talent of the century’, what does that make the Reds’ own in-form defender?

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