Jesus since leaving the blue half of Manchester has helped the Gunners to the top of PL, scoring 4 times and grabbing three assists in the process
By Kehinde Okeowo
Brazilian striker, Gabriel Jesus, has disclosed why he left Manchester City to join North London side, Arsenal, during last summer’s transfer window.
According to the 25-year-old, he decided to leave Manchester City because he needed a change from Pep Guardiola’s style of football.
Jesus made a £45million move to the Emirates in the summer after five years at the Etihad, during the period, he won 4 Premier League (PL) medals and 5 other major honours.
The striker since moving south has helped Arsenal to the top of the table after seven games, scoring four times and grabbing three assists in the process.
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According to Mirror, unlike how Jesus was used at City, Mikel Arteta deployed him as his side’s central striker and attacking focal point and he has delivered.
The strategy has worked so far, with Jesus thriving and enjoying his football and because of his impact on his new team, he has already been dubbed one of the signings of the summer.
Gabriel Jesus speaking to ESPN Brazil, declared he feels “free” at Arsenal and admits he left Manchester City because of his manager’s style of play.
He said, “The thing was the way [Guardiola] understands football and what he wanted.
“Then it was up to you to accept it or not. If you don’t accept it, ‘thank you’ and let’s go for another challenge.
“I accepted it for a while, but there came a moment when I said: ‘I want another thing for myself.’ I thanked him, ‘thanks for everything,’ he understood, and we moved on.
“It is different here at Arsenal. The football is different – different players, different ways to play.
“At City, it was different. The striker didn’t touch the ball that much, you see this by watching the games. And, when it was time to touch the ball, it was not the striker, because [Guardiola] ended up putting a midfielder to come closer. OK, fine. So, I decided to change.”
“I talked a lot with Arteta about Arsenal’s style,” Jesus added. “He knows me, I know him, I understood what he wanted from me. Now, I’m free on the pitch, playing football with a smile on my face and trying to do my best all the time.”
Arsenal next play their local rival, Tottenham in a North London derby at Emirates, a game which is likely to be one of their biggest matches of the season.
Spurs currently sit third, just two places and one point below the Gunners in the table, with Man City, sandwiched in between.
Arteta’s men can extend their lead on Spurs to four points if they win, while Spurs will leapfrog Arsenal in the table if they emerged victorious.
Commenting on the derby, Jesus added, “I’ve had some experience of derbies, like when I played for Palmeiras, City and Brazil. So, I know what a derby is, but I never played one Arsenal versus Tottenham here.
“So, it will be my first and I will hopefully get the win, not only in my first but all the derbies that I will play.”