What Gabriel Jesus could bring to Arsenal
Karan Tejwani
- Updated: 25 Apr 2022 10:14 BST
- 3 min read
Gabriel Jesus has been linked with a move to Arsenal this summer as the Gunners look to bolster their attacking ranks in the transfer window.
Should the move go through, it would be a shrewd signing for Mikel Arteta’s team as they need to add some firepower to their team, with Alexandre Lacazette set to depart as well.
Adding Jesus to their ranks would mean bringing in a player with a decent goalscoring record, and a player with his best years still ahead of him.
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What could Gabriel Jesus bring to Arsenal?
Additionally, Arteta’s experience of working with Jesus could also be beneficial – the pair worked together at Manchester City when the Spaniard was the assistant to Pep Guardiola.
The Brazilian forward has often proven his quality at this level, and while he hasn’t got a record similar to Manchester City’s previous great forward, Sergio Aguero, he still possesses qualities that would be valuable to the Gunners.
As often shown, Jesus’ excellent link-up play would fit in well with an Arsenal team that was developed in their attacking play over the course of the season, and he would slot in with talents like Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe.
Additionally, he has a decent record of contributing to goals, having scored 93 goals in 230 appearances across all competitions, and 57 in 155 in the league for Manchester City, which may not seem a lot, but considering the relative lack of minutes he has played since joining, it’s a positive return.
One area he could improve is his finishing – according to Expected Goals data, he should ideally have 20 more league goals to his tally, and that is something to work on wherever he plays in the coming years.
🗣 "I'm the happiest man in the world because always he is there."
Pep Guardiola speaks very highly of Gabriel Jesus' after he scored four goals for Man City pic.twitter.com/FFYXUi8gKO— Football Daily (@footballdaily) April 24, 2022
His recent display against Watford was an indication of how good he can be, being involved in all five of Manchester City’s goals, scoring four and setting up the other.
Arsenal legend Ian Wright praised his unselfishness and range of finishing in that game, as well as his desire to chase down the opposition when needed, which ultimately created Rodri’s goal against Watford.
In addition to contributing those five goals, Jesus could’ve had more assists, as he set up Raheem Sterling for a chance that was wasted.
In all, it is easy to see why Arteta would want to bring Jesus to the Emirates Stadium: the prior experience of working with him, the forward’s qualities and his obvious potential to get even better.
