MARTI'S SUPREME

Angel Gabriel puts Liverpool row behind him to net treble

- BY JOHN CROSS

GABRIEL MARTINELLI was cast as the arch-villain just three days ago.

But Martinelli was Arsenal's FA Cup hero this time with a sensational hat-trick to ensure a comfortable passage into the fourth round for Mikel Arteta’s Gunners.

Arsenal have gone out at the first hurdle in the past two seasons, but there were no slip-ups at Fratton Park despite Arteta making 10 changes to his starting lineup. And it was Martinelli, who was lambasted after pushing injured Liverpool defender Conor Bradley off the pitch on Thursday night, who really seized his chance to write his own script.

Mind you, the travelling 3,000 Arsenal fans were quick to chant what they thought about Gary Neville after the Sky Sports pundit had been particularly brutal about Martinelli’s actions against Liverpool.

Martinelli (with the matchball, right) is a speedy Brazil winger, but even he has got Arsenal's set-piece bug because two of his goals were near-post headers from Noni Madueke corners.

That makes it 17 set-piece goals for Arsenal this season and they set another record when teenager Marli Salmon came on as a second-half substitute for Gabriel, who was the only survivor from the starting lineup against Liverpool.