Football.london reports that Martinelli is close to joining Al-Hilal from Arsenal for £60 million.

This transfer would make Martinelli Arsenal's most expensive sale in history, surpassing the record set by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who moved to Liverpool for £35 million on August 31, 2015.

Football.london understands that one of Arsenal's goals entering this summer window was to break this long-standing club sale record. In the years since, numerous players from top clubs have been sold for more than Arsenal's previous record.

After several high-spending summer transfer windows, Arsenal are under pressure to sell players. In contrast, their player sales revenue has not offset their expenditures as much as Manchester City and Chelsea's have in recent years. Mikel Arteta's appointment in 2019 initiated a complete squad rebuild. During this period, Arsenal faced the global pandemic, which affected the club's investment capacity.

Arsenal cancelled some contracts and borrowed from the Bank of England's Covid Corporate Financing Facility to cope with lost revenue. In the years following the pandemic, Arsenal's commercial revenue improved significantly, combined with the relatively strong financial position accumulated during the Wenger era, helping them continue to strengthen the squad.

Martinelli joined Arsenal in 2019 for approximately £6 million, before Arteta took charge. He made an impressive Europa League debut under Unai Emery, scoring in back-to-back matches against Standard Liège and Vitória de Guimarães at just 18 years old.

However, shortly after Arteta took over, Martinelli suffered a severe knee injury. This came after he had just scored his second and third Premier League goals against Sheffield United and Chelsea, with the latter being particularly impressive.

This injury meant Martinelli missed Arsenal's FA Cup final win. During that cup run, he had helped the team progress, assisting Saka's opening goal in a 2-1 away victory over Bournemouth. While many players were sold or left as their contracts expired when Arteta took over, Martinelli stayed and renewed his contract.

However, in the following seasons, Martinelli failed to recapture his early promise. Football.london understands that by the end of last season, the player had begun to consider his next move, as he knew the club was expected to strengthen the left wing.

Eze started ahead of Martinelli and Trossard in an away match against Manchester City, indicating Mikel Arteta's intentions for the new season.

Football.london learned that after the World Cup, Eze was considered higher in the pecking order than Martinelli. The club had determined that if a suitable deal could be found, it would be the right time for Martinelli to leave.

Galatasaray was a potential suitor, but their offer of around £38 million was far below Arsenal's asking price. At the time, this fee would have made Martinelli the second most expensive player in Süper Lig history, second only to Victor Osimhen.

Arsenal internally assessed Martinelli's value by referencing transfer fees for players like Savio, Morgan Rogers, and Anthony Gordon. However, with only one Premier League goal last season at age 25, the Gunners did not receive strong interest from top five leagues, especially English clubs.

Ian Wright's questioning of Arsenal's treatment of Martinelli on Sky Sports surprised many within the club. Football.london understands that Mikel Arteta had communicated with Martinelli about his exclusion from the squad for the Community Shield against Manchester City and the first league match against Coventry.

After the victory over Coventry, Wright stated: "The way Martinelli is being treated right now, it genuinely makes me feel uncomfortable."

Wright said: "I know they might want him to leave, and many people might say, 'Yes, it's time for him to go.' But there's a way to do it, and it should be in his best interest, and in a way that he wants to leave."

Wright continued: "He's not in the squad, no one has clearly explained it to him, he doesn't know what's happening."

Wright also stated: "He's done enough for this team, he deserves a little more respect than this."

There is a view that while Arteta had explained the reason for Martinelli's exclusion from the squad, the club's intention to sell Martinelli had not been clearly communicated to the player at that time. That being said, a sporting director typically does not keep players constantly updated on behind-the-scenes progress until it is necessary to inform them.

Despite the club already signing Tzolis, they continue to seek a high-profile new signing for the left wing. Arsenal's interest in Morgan Rogers ceased after Chelsea's significant spending, Vinicius Jr renewed with Real Madrid, and Julian Alvarez remained committed to Atletico Madrid.

Arsenal had originally planned to replace both Martinelli and Trossard simultaneously. One would be replaced by a lower-profile option, with Tzolis seen as excellent value and an opportunity to develop a young player; the other was hoped to be filled by a marquee signing to elevate the attack.

Unfortunately, the market did not develop as Arsenal had hoped. As the transfer window entered its final stages, Al-Hilal emerged as a genuinely interested party willing to pay Arsenal's asking price, and an internal decision was made.

Football.london understands that all levels of Arsenal agreed: even if they failed to sign another forward in this window, Martinelli would still be sold. Even as deadline day approached, Arsenal never considered halting this deal.

Tzolis, Eze, and Madueke were deemed sufficient to carry the team until January. Although Arsenal had grand ambitions of signing a marquee player, their inability to do so did not prevent them from agreeing to the £60 million deal with the Saudi club.

In the final stages before the transfer window closed, negotiations remained ongoing between the two clubs. Football.london understands that Martinelli's former club, Ituano, held a 15% sell-on clause from his 2019 transfer to Arsenal.

Initially, the parties discussed a fixed fee of £50 million plus approximately £6 million in add-ons. However, the two clubs ultimately agreed on a fixed fee of £60 million, with the inclusion of any sell-on clause currently unknown.

Martinelli arrived in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday local time and completed his medical within 24 hours. Arsenal is expected to announce his departure soon, and the Saudi transfer window remains open until October 12.

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