Bradley, who later left the Emirates on crutches with his left knee in a brace, went down after falling awkwardly near the touchline and was in some discomfort before Martinelli dropped the ball on him and then tried to manhandle him off the pitch.
It provoked a furious response from Liverpool’s players, at the end of a match in which there were few talking points and neither side created many chances.
Both Martinelli and Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate were shown yellow cards in the ensuing fight.
Speaking on Sky Sports’ coverage of the game, pundit Roy Keane called Martinelli’s action ‘a disgrace’, although Arteta appealed for understanding on his player’s behalf.
“Knowing Gabi, he’s an incredible, nice guy,” he said. “He probably didn’t realize what happened. I hope Conor is doing well, I’ll have a conversation with him to understand that. Probably (Martinelli) didn’t recognize what happened.”
Arne Slot reacts to Gabriel Martinelli’s push on Conor Bradley
Liverpool boss Arne Slot was somber about the possible extent of Bradley’s injury, which occurred in the fourth minute of stoppage time at the end of the match when the full-back tried to clear the ball.
“I fear the worst for Conor Bradley,” he said.
“I don’t know yet, but he had to go on a stretcher. We’ll have to wait for the scans to see if it’s that bad.”
About Martinelli’s reaction, he said: “I don’t know Gabriel Martinelli, but he comes across as a nice guy. The problem in general in football is that there is so much time wasted and players pretending to be injured that you can get irritated if you think a player is wasting time.”
“You can’t expect Martinelli to think so clearly in the 94th minute. I’m 100 percent sure that if he knew what the injury could be, he would never do that.”
Arsenal dominated the first half without causing much trouble for Alisson in the Liverpool goal, although the visitors had the best chance of the opening period when Bradley hit the crossbar after a mix-up between David Raya and William Saliba.
Slot’s team had the better of the game after the break, but a winner never seemed to happen.
“In the second half we dominated possession for almost the entire 45 minutes of their half,” he said.
“Perhaps the only thing I missed from my side was that despite all the possession and all the moments around the penalty area, you hoped to create more chances.”
The result keeps Arsenal six points clear at the top of the Premier League, after Manchester City and Aston Villa also drew on Wednesday.
Asked if it was a missed opportunity to go clear, Arteta said: “Yes, every time you don’t win. But then we would be 12, 15, 20 points ahead. I really have to commend the team and the players individually for what they have done over this Christmas period.”
“The demands and the schedule are incredible. What they have done is remarkable. To come out of this period, with all the problems we had, in the strong position we are in now, I think the boys deserve everyone’s recognition.”
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