Gabriel Martinelli Shines with Hat-Trick for Al-Hilal

Gabriel Martinelli did not just arrive in Saudi Arabia on Saturday night. He announced himself.

The Brazilian forward, still finding his feet at Al-Hilal after his summer move from Arsenal, tore into Al-Taawoun in Buraidah with a ruthless hat-trick in the seventh round of the Saudi Roshn League, snapping a long and uncomfortable scoring drought in the process.

Drought over, spotlight on

Eighteen minutes in, the tension that had followed him from London finally broke.

A loose ball dropped inside the Al-Taawoun penalty area. Martinelli reacted first, pouncing on the rebound and guiding it calmly into the net. One touch, one finish, one enormous weight lifted.

It was his first goal for Al-Hilal, coming in just his third appearance for the club. It carried layers of meaning. The strike ended a seven-month wait for a goal at club level, his first since he scored for Arsenal in a 4-0 FA Cup win over Wigan Athletic on 15 February.

For a player used to living off sharp movements and sharper finishes, that gap had started to loom large.

At league level the numbers were even starker. Martinelli had not scored in a domestic league match since 21 September 2025, when he found the net in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City in the Premier League’s fifth round.

He had managed just one goal in that time, a crucial one for Brazil in their 2-1 victory over Japan in the round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. For his new club, though, the wait had dragged into his first weeks in Riyadh.

On Saturday, it finally snapped.

A new partnership clicks

Once the first went in, the old instincts returned.

Two minutes before half-time, Martinelli struck again. English striker Ollie Watkins slid a precise through ball into space, and the Brazilian did the rest. He surged clear of the defence, carried the ball into the box and finished with the composure of a player who suddenly remembered exactly who he is.

Al-Hilal had their third of the night. Martinelli had his second. The away end had a new hero to sing for.

Any doubts about his sharpness vanished five minutes after the restart. Dutch winger Crysencio Summerville drove down the flank and drilled a low cross into the danger area. Martinelli arrived at the perfect moment, sweeping the ball home to complete his hat-trick in the 50th minute.

Three goals, three different types of finish: a poacher’s reaction, a breakaway one-on-one, and a timed run into the box. For Al-Hilal, it was the full package they believed they were buying. For Martinelli, it was a reminder that his best version had not stayed behind in England.

From slow start to statement night

The performance in Buraidah marked a sharp turn from his first days in Saudi Arabia.

Martinelli’s debut for Al-Hilal came off the bench in a 2-0 win over Al-Shabab in the fifth round of the Roshn League. He then earned a start against Neom, but the team slipped to a 2-0 defeat and he again walked off without a goal.

Those early outings were about adaptation: new league, new teammates, new expectations.

This time, it was about impact.

The hat-trick was his first for Al-Hilal and his first in eight months, since he scored three in Arsenal’s 4-1 FA Cup win over Portsmouth on 11 January. The setting has changed, the shirt is different, but the storyline on Saturday felt familiar — a streaky, explosive forward catching fire.

Al-Hilal signed Martinelli to tilt tight games and decide big nights. In Buraidah, he showed exactly how quickly he can do both when the goals start to flow.