Arsenal need to recover from a damaging loss at the weekend, which has threatened to derail their Premier League bid, with Gary Neville calling on their title winner to step up
Gary Neville admits Arsenal need to calm the nerves ahead of their title showdown
Gary Neville admits Arsenal need to calm the nerves ahead of their title showdown(Image: Sky Sports)
View 2 Images
Gary Neville has suggested that this might have to be the week where Gabriel Jesus takes centre stage in the Arsenal dressing room and attempts to impart his wisdom and experience when it comes to getting over the line in a title race.
The Premier League saw a huge shift at the weekend with the Gunners losing to Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon. Just over 24 hours later Manchester City hammered Chelsea to close the gap ahead of next weekend's clash between the two title protagonists.
Pep Guardiola and co now know that they can win all of their remaining games and be champions as they seek to break Arsenal hearts once again. The north Londoners played with a nervousness on Saturday and were booed off by the Emirates crowd.
For all their quality and progression in recent years they are starved of players who have actually come out victorious in a title race. Jesus is the only member of their squad to lift the Premier League trophy.
The Brazilian won it three times with City, before leaving them for Arsenal in 2022, and Neville said now might be the time for the forward, who is not known for being a huge presence in the dressing room, to try and bring some calm to the Gunners' environment.
He said on his podcast: "The problem they've got is they haven't got anybody of experience in the club of winning a title. Gabriel Jesus maybe, but I don't think he's the type of player that's going to translate that to a dressing room.
"Doesn't seem to be that character. He's a good player, but he doesn't seem to be that person who can really set the tone. Maybe this week he does have to have an influence for Arsenal.
"I know Mikel Arteta is always looking to try and find a way of how to gain an advantage and he's got to try and find something this week. Is it Gabriel Jesus, who just talks about what a title race is like. You know he's been through some big ones with Liverpool, some monstrous battles, and come through them."
Gabriel Jesus is the only Premier League winner in Arsenal's squad
Gabriel Jesus is the only Premier League winner in Arsenal's squad(Image: Getty Images)
View 2 Images
Arsenal have finished second in each of the past three seasons. In two of those they were leading until late on, when City managed to seize on their mistakes to claim the title. Neville insists that it would've be naive from Arteta and his players to think they would win their first league without serious challenge, despite previously boasting a comfortable lead at the summit.
"You don't win your first title by running away with it by 26 points - it just doesn't happen," he said. "That's not reality. It's always going to be a struggle, and there's probably been a couple of bad experiences in the previous seasons in getting to this point."
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of MirrorFootball content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
World Cup Legends - special edition on sale now
There is nothing like the World Cup to create legends and this new special edition publication celebrates the heroes of the planet's greatest sporting competition