Gabriel Martinelli silences Portsmouth boos but Arsenal dilemma remains - 5 talking points

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Boo-boy Gabriel Martinelli helped Arsenal brush off an early blow to dismantle Championship strugglers Portsmouth and avoid a potential banana skin in the FA Cup third round.

Colby Bishop stunned the Premier League leaders in just the 3rd minute when he was in the right place at the right time to nudge the hosts into the lead. But Fratton Park's jubilation swiftly evaporated as an Arsenal set-piece led to an Andre Dozzell own goal five minutes later.

Martinelli, targeted by fans after trying to force the injured Conor Bradley off the pitch in midweek, completed the turnaround in the 25th minute via another corner to put Mikel Arteta's men firmly in control of the tie. Noni Madueke had the chance to add a third from the penalty spot shortly before half-time but sent his spot-kick wide.

Unfortunately for Portsmouth, Martinelli was in no mood to be quite as generous. He added his second and third after the break to cap a comfortable win for Arsenal, who march onto Monday night's fourth round draw. Here are Mirror Football 's talking points...

Arsenal may have won the FA Cup more than any other team in history but Portsmouth have pedigree themselves in the competition having lifted the famous trophy back in 2008.

With Pompey currently languishing just above the Championship relegation zone few fancied them to spring an upset, so Bishop's goal inside three minutes was certainly not in the script.

The former Accrington Stanley man stabbed home after Kepa Arrizabalaga could only divert an effort into the striker's path. It was the dream start for John Mousinho's side but, unfortunately, that was pretty much as good as things got...

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'Set-piece again ole ole' was the chant that replaced the infamous Pompey chimes in the south coast air as the red and white shirts of Arsenal cantered over to celebrate Martinelli's cute near post header midway through the first half. The Brazilian's effort made it a 100 per cent success rate from corners in the game for Arsenal, whose first had prompted the unfortunate Dozzell to put through his own net. Martinelli went on to complete his hat-trick with another near post header late on just to put the cherry on the cake.

Arsenal's set-piece wizardry is hardly the secret weapon it was previously billed at due to their remarkable strike rate over the past couple of seasons. Sunday's treble means they have now plundered 17 goals from corners alone this term. Will Arsenal go on to win the cup or the league? Who knows, but one thing for certain is that the number of goals direct from corners will rise - probably substantially - between now and May.

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Targeted by home fans after attempting to move the injured Bradley in midweek, Martinelli bagged his first ever senior hat-trick to help Arsenal navigate a tricky cup tie and silence the boo boys in style.

His first, a deft near post header, came from another set-piece with his second coming early after the restart. He could have travelled back to north London with the match ball, too, only for an awkward effort to hit the post after a swift transition just before half-time. His third? You guessed it. Another corner, another header.

This was a fine afternoon for Martinelli and one that will live long in his memory. The onus now is on him to replicate this form in the Premier League, where he's found the net just once this term.

Perhaps the most striking thing about this Arsenal victory was the team Arteta named. The likes of Saka, Saliba and Odegaard were rested but this was no understrength XI.

Every member of Arsenal's team, perhaps bar Kepa, would probably have a case to start regularly in the Premier League. And it showed as Arsenal eventually upped the ante to swat Portsmouth away.

Arsenal's squad quality and strength in depth will serve them well going forward - both in this competition and the Premier League title race.

With Viktor Gyokeres failing to hit the heights expected following his summer move from Sporting Lisbon, the presence of Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz - both have been absent through injury - has seen the Swede's position as Arsenal's first-choice No 9 called into question.

Jesus in particular has looked sharp, albeit he struggled to fire against Portsmouth, while Havertz impressed leading the line previously before being struck down by injury.

Neither Jesus or Havertz managed to find the net on the south coast with Martinelli taking centre stage. Did Jesus do enough to convince Arteta that he should be ahead of Gyokeres in the pecking order? Probably not. But the return of Havertz could give Arsenal and Arteta plenty to think about if Gyokeres cannot rediscover his goalscoring touch in the coming weeks.

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