Gabriel Jesus just hasn’t had the best of 2024. This was a year he lost his starting spot to Kai Havertz, and it was also a year when what he did on the pitch just never seemed to click in front of goal.
Instead of discussing how he wins his spot back in the Arsenal lineup, we Gooners have found ourselves talking about how the club needs to cash in on him while advocating for Arsenal’s move for another top striker.
Given an opportunity to save his Arsenal career, the Brazilian has fully utilized it. Against Crystal Palace last week in the Carabao Cup in his first start in a while, he delivered a headline-grabbing performance, picking up a hat trick as Arsenal beat Palace 3-2 to book a Carabao semi-final clash with Newcastle.
As influential as he was on Wednesday night, he was retained in the Arsenal lineup on Saturday. That decision paid off as he once again found the scoresheet, grabbing a brace this time.
If the 27-year-old can build on those two performances, there’s nothing stopping him. Scoring twice in a row and retaining your spot in the lineup should be a confidence booster. We know what confidence can do to a player; with it and opportunities, Jesus could be back to his best.
That said, if coach Arteta continues to trust him, he needs to do just one thing: keep it simple -be in the penalty box when he needs to be, take the shot when he needs to – don’t overdo it. He could be the one to help the Arsenal attack realize its potential.
Fortunately, he knows about keeping it simple, as he revealed via Arsenal.com Yaya Toure’s advice to him when he moved to the Premier League.
Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City (L) and Yaya Toure of Manchester City
Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City (L) and Yaya Toure of Manchester City (R) look on after Swansea City score their first goal during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Swansea City at Etihad Stadium on February 5, 2017 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
He says, “I received the ball, controlled it, and then flicked it up. But Yaya Toure turned to me and said, ‘Gabby, play simple, here we play simple!’
“I thought OK, I can do that, and I was so happy that he could come to me and say that, because it really helped a lot to know what it was like in England. It’s different from Brazil.”
I bet every Gooner wants Gabriel Jesus to be back at his best. Arteta may also have kept him around (not sanctioning his move to Palmeiras in the summer) because he believes in him. The last two performances from the Brazilian have given us a glimpse of his brilliance. Now we hope he can find consistency and sustain that run.
Peter Rix
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