Gabriel Martinelli named in Brazil pre-Olympic tournament squad, he is set to miss four games if he goes.
Brazil has just released the names of 23 players who will represent them at the pre-Olympic tournament that qualifies them for the Olympic games in Tokyo 2020.
One of the high-profile names on the list is Martinelli who has become more important to Arsenal as the season unfolds.
Martinelli is joined by another Premier League-based player in Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz and it would be interesting to see if their teams freely release them.
Martinelli is Arsenal’s second top scorer in all competitions after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and he has been involved in the first team more under Freddie Ljungberg.
Speaking to the Brazilian media, Brazil’s under 23 coach admitted that both the clubs and players have to accept the invite before they will make the tournament squad because the competition is not being played on a FIFA official date.
The tournament qualifies South America’s representatives for the Olympics and it has been slated for the 18th of January through the 9th of February.
Arsenal would miss Martinelli should he be allowed to leave for the competition. If brazil reaches the final, Martinelli would miss Arsenal’s games against Sheffield United, Chelsea, Burnley and Newcastle at the turn of the New Year.