'I don't like to go near my Arsenal team-mate in training - it's the same for everyone'

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Ben White claimed last year that he doesn't like facing Gabriel Martinelli one‑vs‑one, even though the Brazilian had a fairly uninspired afternoon in Arsenal's 2-1 defeat at Manchester City on Sunday. Martinelli, who replaced Noni Madueke at half‑time, struggled to make an impact as Arsenal were ultimately outdone by the hosts.

Rayan Cherki opened the scoring inside 16 minutes before Kai Havertz levelled shortly after, but Erling Haaland struck in the second half to deal a major blow to Arsenal's Premier League title hopes. Arsenal arrived in Manchester on the back of the 2-1 loss to Bournemouth , with warnings not to sit in and hope for a draw.

Although the Gunners remain top of the Premier League, Pep Guardiola's side still have a game in hand against Crystal Palace and face Burnley away on Wednesday night. Victory at Turf Moor would pull City level on points with the north Londoners.

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And while things have taken a turn for Arsenal, this time last year Ben White was full of praise for Martinelli, detailing just how difficult the Brazilian is to face in training.

"I play against Gabriel Martinelli every day in training for example, and to be honest I don’t want to go too near to him most of the time, but at the same time we have to keep it competitive," he told Arsenal's website.

"But you know there is a line, and it's the same for everyone. We all come up against the same people each day, and there's like an unwritten rule that you don’t go in too hard for a 50-50 or something like that. You can save those for the weekend!"

White added that while the players push each other hard to win, it all stops the moment training ends. "Every day me and Martinelli have a one-v-one battle, but then as soon as the session is over our relationship is so good," White added.

"You do your best and give everything when you are training, but you need to look after each other too, you have to be clever."

Arsenal are back in Premier League action on Saturday evening when they host Newcastle United (5:30pm), before travelling to face Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semi‑finals.

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