Why Al Hilal want Martinelli alongside Watkins and Summerville

Al Hilal have confirmed Ollie Watkins and are now working towards another major addition from the Premier League. Arsenal have reportedly agreed a deal worth about £55.7 million for Gabriel Martinelli, with the remaining formalities still to be completed. As of August 31, neither club has announced the Brazilian’s transfer. The distinction matters, although the progress of the talks is already enough to explain the direction of Al Hilal’s summer.

Crysencio Summerville arrived from West Ham in July. Watkins followed from Aston Villa on Sunday. Adding Martinelli would give Simone Inzaghi three established forwards with recent experience in England, all introduced during the same window. That raises a reasonable question for supporters: what does a third expensive attacker provide that the first two have not already supplied?

Part of the answer lies in the difference between having several good players and asking them all to do the same job. Watkins has built his career around finding chances in and around the penalty area. Summerville can carry the ball from a wide position and create an opening with a change of direction. Martinelli’s pace offers another route, particularly when he can attack space beyond a defender rather than receive every pass with an opponent already in front of him.

Those qualities could work together. A defender occupied by Watkins may have less freedom to move across towards a winger, while a run from Martinelli can make it harder to step out and challenge the player carrying the ball. There are different possible arrangements for that movement. Inzaghi will have to establish which of them his players can repeat, rather than assume the understanding comes with the transfer fees.

Martinelli’s recent Arsenal record explains both the attraction and the caution. He scored six Champions League goals last season but only one in the Premier League. The contrast suggests there is more to assess than his domestic total alone, without providing a simple explanation for why the competitions produced such different returns. Playing time, opposition and the situations in which chances arrive all belong in that judgement.

His capacity to run behind a defence is better established. Data from the 2024/25 Premier League season recorded more such runs from Martinelli than from any Arsenal teammate. That work can help create an opportunity even when he does not receive the pass, because the defender still has to account for it. Al Hilal would be buying a player whose contribution need not begin with the ball at his feet.

There will nevertheless be many league games in which space behind is limited. Opponents who defend close to their own area can make a fast winger wait for a different kind of opening. Martinelli would then need to combine with the players around him, move at the right moment and help sustain attacks when a direct route is unavailable. His European goals provide encouragement; they do not remove the need for adaptation in Riyadh.

The squad argument extends beyond finding the strongest eleven. Al Hilal face domestic and continental commitments, with the expanded Champions League Elite adding to a demanding season. A forward may be unavailable, need a rest or be less suited to a particular opponent. Another established option allows a coach to make those decisions without asking the remaining players to cover every responsibility themselves.

Last season offers an obvious reason to value that flexibility. Al Hilal completed the league campaign unbeaten yet finished two points behind Al Nassr. Nine draws sat alongside 25 victories. That is an impressive record which also leaves room to ask how a few more close matches might have been won. It does not follow that every draw was caused by the forwards or that another signing would have changed it, but creating and finishing an additional chance can have a large effect over a long title race.

The rebuilding also creates its own work. Summerville has had more time with the squad, while Watkins is only beginning to train with his new teammates. If Martinelli arrives, Inzaghi must introduce another player without losing the understanding already developing among the others. A clearly defined initial role may be more useful than asking a newcomer to perform several tasks before he has learned the movement around him.

There is competition to manage on the left in particular. Martinelli and Summerville have both been effective starting from that side, and Salem Al Dawsari remains an important part of Al Hilal’s attack. The answer may vary from match to match. One can move inside, another can operate on the opposite flank or the coach can choose between them according to the game. None of those choices should be treated as settled before the player has signed and worked with the team.

For now, the reported agreement indicates that Al Hilal want more than a replacement centre forward. Watkins gives them a proven scorer, Summerville adds a player comfortable taking on defenders, and Martinelli could increase the threat from runs beyond the ball. The appeal is understandable, as is the amount of coordination required to make it work. Completing the transfer would be one important step. Turning those individual strengths into a more reliable way to win close games would be the one that matters over the season.