football.london

Declan Rice sends emotional eight-word message to Gabriel Jesus after Arsenal hat-trick

Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka were full of praise for Gabriel Jesus after his second-half hat-trick secured a 3-2 win over Crystal Palace and booked Arsenal's place in the semi-finals of the League Cup.

The Brazilian, part of a much-changed side that took on the Eagles, scored his first goals at the Emirates Stadium in 2024 after a difficult 12 months in north London.

Jesus, who arrived from Manchester City in 2022, has started just two Premier League games this season, finding opportunities hard to come by for the Gunners.

But following his impressive showing on Wednesday night, Jesus was the subject of praise from his team-mates.

On Instagram, Rice, who was not part of the match-day squad, uploaded an image of Jesus celebrating one of his three goals, writing: "You deserve this, brother! So happy for you.

Saka, on the other hand, replied to the 27-year-old's Instagram picture with a flame emoji, emphasising the prolificacy of the forward's performance.

Speaking after his side booked their place in the semi-finals, Mikel Arteta said he was hopeful it would be a night that provided Jesus with a "spark" and changed the course of his season.

"It's now about consistency," said the Spaniard. "It's a moment of spark that will bring so much to the team, that we can rely on him to change games. We need to give him more chances."

Meanwhile, Jesus added: "I wear the number nine for Arsenal so I have to be scoring goals. Kai [Havertz] as well, we are the strikers of the team and have a pressure to score.

"If you want to challenge for a place we have to keep scoring. It is not easy, if it was then there would be many strikers in the world, but we keep trying.

"I came here to win the Premier League and my first two seasons we were there but for some details. This third season I want to win."

Join the football.london Arsenal WhatsApp channel

Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Jesus with the Arsenal Therapy Dog Win during the Arsenal Men's team group shoot at London Colney on September 18, 2023

Join our Arsenal WhatsApp channel and get all the latest breaking news, opinion, podcasts and in-depth stories from football.london's dedicated Arsenal writers straight to your phone!

By following this free service you will be the first to know the news from the Emirates Stadium as it happens, when it happens.

To join our dedicated Arsenal channel, all you have to do is click this link and you can join thousands of others following our Gunners coverage!

If you're curious, you can check out our privacy policy here.

Read full news in source page