Gabriel Jesus names ONE Arsenal player they can't afford to lose

Tom Weber

• 6 Jul 2023 18:32 BST
• 3 min read

Arsenal star Gabriel Jesus has revealed which of his teammates is irreplaceable.

The striker arrived at the Emirates last year from Manchester City in a deal worth €52.2 million and he helped the Gunners mount a surprise title challenge, running his former team very close indeed. Despite struggling for fitness, Jesus still found the back of the net 11 times.

Yet he does not believe that he is Arsenal's most important player. According to him, defensive stalwart William Saliba is Mikel Arteta's most valuable performer and the north London club can't afford to lose the Frenchman again next term if they want to challenge for the title.

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Saliba was imperious in partnering with Gabriel Magalhaes last season before a back injury suffered against Sporting CP in the Europa League ended his campaign prematurely - and Arsenal's title hopes with it. Without the Frenchman, the Gunners began leaking goals.

Thankfully for Arsenal, Saliba appears to be close to signing a new, long-term contract, news that will be particularly well received by Jesus.

What did Jesus say?

Speaking on The Denilson Show, Jesus noted that, "when he [Saliba] plays, we concede few goals, when he doesn’t play, the number increases."

"When I got injured, Eddie [Nketiah] replaced me very well. Then we signed Leo [Trossard]. We kept the pace. But when Saliba got injured, it was complicated."

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"The other defenders are good, but we were playing in a certain way. Look at the stats, we concede a lot less with him."

In order to prevent another injury from derailing their season, Arsenal are reportedly on the verge of bringing in Ajax star Jurrien Timber in a deal worth €45m as a defensive reinforcement. Defensive midfielder Declan Rice, expected to arrive for a British record fee of €123m, will give further cover to Arsenal's backline.