Getty Images 09 January 2026, 09:29

The match between the leaders of the Premier League, Arsenal and Liverpool, which ended in a goalless draw, was remembered not only by a tense struggle, but also by a disgusting incident in the last minutes.

Gunners forward Gabriel Martinelli has come under fire for his actions towards Conor Bradley. At the end of the meeting, the Merseyside defender fell on the lawn, suffering, as it turned out later, a serious injury.

However, Martinelli, disappointed with the result of the match and believing that the opponent was wasting time, threw the ball at the lying player, and then tried to force him out of the field. In the end, Bradley could not continue the game and left the stadium on a stretcher.

Manchester United legend Gary Neville, commenting on the episode on Sky Sports, did not hold back his emotions:

“You have no right to push him off the pitch. You can’t do that, you idiot! It’s so low. I’m surprised the Liverpool players didn’t run up and tackle him. It’s an absolute disgrace,” the pundit said.

Roy Keane also condemned the Brazilian’s actions, calling them disgusting and calling on Martinelli to apologize.

Liverpool coach Arne Slot tried to justify Martinelli:

“I don’t know Gabriel personally, but he seems like a nice guy. The problem with him – and it’s a general problem in football – is that players take too much time and pretend to be injured at the end of matches or during a game, which can sometimes be annoying. I’m 100 percent sure: if he knew how serious the injury could be, he would never have done that. But it looks bad if the injury really turns out to be what we have we are afraid

The head coach of Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, defended his player, saying that the Brazilian had no malicious intent: “Martinelli probably did not know that Bradley was injured. I know Gabi well – he definitely did not intend to do anything bad,” the specialist concluded.

Liverpool are now awaiting the doctors’ verdict on the timing of Bradley’s recovery.