Leeds were up against it heading to face the league leaders at the Emirates Stadium, but Javi Gracia picked a team without a striker as he looked to frustrate the Gunners.
The Spaniard’s plan did not work however as Arsenal romped to a 4-1 win, enjoying 67 per cent possession throughout the match.
Ayling completed the full 90 minutes for Leeds and Derry thinks he found it tough against Arsenal and against Martinelli in particular.
The former Leeds man admits he expected Ayling to use his experience a bit more, especially when it came to keeping out the Gunners’ second goal in the second half.
“I honestly thought he had a tough afternoon. He was up against a really good player by the way, he’s a fantastic player”, Derry said post match on BBC Radio Leeds.
“What he wants is to get him one v one, and Martinelli got him exactly where he wanted to get him, especially with that second goal in the second half.
“I just thought Ayling could maybe have used a little more of his experience in that situation.
“He’ll be going home tonight and he’ll be disappointed, but he has to recover from that and respond, and he has done that many times in his career.”
Gracia will be expected to shuffle his pack on Tuesday night when Nottingham Forest visit Elland Road as Leeds look to try to win the game against their fellow strugglers.
