**Arsenal** have agreed to let **Gabriel Jesus** join **Barcelona** after he spent four years at the club.
The Brazilian forward departs North London with a year left to go on his contract in a deal that had been coming for some time. Jesus does not leave the **Emirates Stadium** with the same affection from the fans as compatriot **Gabriel Martinelli**, but there is a tinge of regret around his time in the team.
·**A sudden summery spark**
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Jesus joined **Arsenal** for £45 million from **Manchester City** in July 2022. He would be greeted later that month by the arrival of **Oleksandr Zinchenko**, and both players were expected to raise the levels of an outfit that had narrowly missed on a top four finish to North London rivals **Tottenham**.
Former club captain **Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang** had come to blows with **Mikel Arteta** while **Alexandre Lacazette** left a lot to be desired in scoring stakes despite his role in general play. **Eddie Nketiah** was a serviceable second choice striker, but a new talisman was needed to lead the line.
Like Zinchenko, Jesus joined the _Gunners_ with the brief of being a more senior figure. Four **Premier League** titles in five years was not enough to satisfy the appetite of a player who had frequently been consigned to the flanks under **Pep Guardiola** and deemed unsuitable to succeed **Sergio Aguero**.
In Jesus, **Arsenal** hoped they had a well-rounded central forward and player with a point to prove to his former club. From kick-off on his **Premier League** debut, he proved to be a compelling watch.
Jinking and jiving his way to what should have been a wonder goal against **Crystal Palace**, his impact was immediate. A brilliant brace followed against **Leicester City**, then came a sublime assist for **Martin Odegaard** against **Bournemouth** much in the image of that carry against the _Eagles_.
Another two strikes came against **Aston Villa** in August, helping him earn the club’s Player of the Month, and **Brentford** as **Arsenal** won five of their first six **Premier League** fixtures that season.
At the start of October, he put the team in the lead against **Tottenham** on derby day, tallying up to five strikes in his first eight league appearances as the _Gunners_ sat at the top of the table. By that point, fans were getting the best of both worlds: a player with the creativity to cause chaos down the sides of defences and empower **Gabriel Martinelli** and also a forward with enough output of his own.
·**A dispensable tool**
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**Arsenal** stayed in first place when the **World Cup** rolled around in November, and Jesus was still impactful even if he was experiencing a goal drought. But from then, things were never the same.
Jesus suffered a knee injury on international duty for **Brazil**. The road to recovery was long, and he had to watch **Arsenal** battle to hold onto pole position until he returned to action by mid-March.
Goals against **Liverpool** and **Chelsea** contributed down the stretch of the season as Jesus ended with a tally of 11 **Premier League** goals. But **Arsenal** ultimately wound up in second spot behind City.
In the first half of the 2023/24 season, Jesus continued to receive opportunities to play through the middle of the attack. His best work was reserved for the team’s return to the **Champions League** as he became the first **Arsenal** player to score in three consecutive games in the competition since 2011.
However, Arteta was already getting the sense that the side might need to evolve beyond Jesus.
The Brazilian was never the most prolific forward for the _Citizens_, hitting double digits for the team only twice in five full **Premier League** seasons. So once Arteta had figured out how to integrate summer signing **Kai Havertz** as a central forward, Jesus found playing time harder to acquire.
He enjoyed another purple patch at the end of 2024, scoring five times in two meetings with Palace in the **Carabao Cup** and **Premier League** before netting again against **Brentford** on New Year’s Day.
Unfortunately for Jesus, a second serious knee injury would virtually kill his career in North London.
·**The end is nigh**
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Jesus suffered an ACL injury against **Manchester United** in the **FA Cup** third round, and he was sidelined for a much longer spell than at the end of 2022. He was left out of the **Champions League** squad for the following campaign, finally returning to the field against **Club Brugge** in December.
By that time, the _Gunners_ could credibly call on three players instead of Jesus. Havertz was also on the injury table with a knee issue of his own, but the board had backed Arteta with the acquisition of £63 million man **Viktor Gyokeres** from **Sporting**. **Mikel Merino** had also made a knack of scoring goals as a makeshift central forward in the spring, so Jesus had his work cut out to get on the field.
The forward would round off 2025 on a high note, sweetly slotting a shot past **Emiliano Martinez** to put **Arsenal** four goals to the good against **Aston Villa** in a rampant victory. However, he was hardly called upon at the backend of the season, making three **Premier League** starts for the side in 2026.
Though Jesus was not a member of the **World Cup** squad for the _Selecão_, there was little likelihood that Arteta would even see him as a valuable option for the first few weeks of this new campaign.
Indeed, Jesus was absent from both the **Community Shield** squad against **Manchester City** and the matchday squad against **Coventry City**. The sticking point for a transfer was always going to be the salary package for a player earning £265,000 a week in spite of his problems with form and fitness.
**Barcelona** have brought **Arsenal** an answer. So, surplus to requirements for another **Premier League** winning outfit, Jesus has now accepted the challenge of finding a future for himself elsewhere.