“He’s not going to change now” - Gary Lineker believes 27-year-old Arsenal star may not be best fit for Mikel Arteta’s brand of football
Gary Lineker has expressed dissatisfaction with the recent performances of Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus. The Brazil international played all 90 minutes of his side's recent 1-1 Premier League draw against Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium.
Gunners forward Ethan Nwaneri, 17, opened the scoring for Mikel Arteta's men in the 16th minute. However, the Gunners were pegged back in the second half as João Pedro drew the home side level.
It was a frustrating afternoon for Arsenal, who missed out on the opportunity to close the gap on league leaders Liverpool. The north London club lacked firepower upfront as neither of the attacking three, led by Jesus, could seal a winner for the visitors.
Meanwhile, football pundit Linker was critical of Jesus' performance, suggesting that the Brazilian hasn't done much to improve his goal-scoring ability. He highlighted some of Jesus' weaknesses as a striker, suggesting that the former City forward was unlikely to change at this point in his career.
Speaking after the game on 'The Rest is Football’ podcast, Linker said:
"We were talking about Jesus yesterday, weren’t we? I mean, he’s honest and he runs and he runs, and he’s got a one in three goal scoring record, which he had a similar thing at Manchester City as well. I think he’s almost two game.
“I mean, he runs everywhere. He runs deep, he goes back deep to try and get the ball. I think if with a bit of centre forward style coaching and just say to him, stay in the middle, stay up the top."
He concluded:
"Don’t come deep all the time. We need you in the box, but he’s probably one of those players that he’s not going to change now.”
Jesus has, however, found his feet in front of goal, scoring six goals in his last five games for the Gunners.
How has Gabriel Jesus performed for Arsenal this season?
The 27-year-old striker's recent form has somewhat forced him into Arteta's plans for the season, following a tough start to the current campaign. Jesus has been used quite sparingly by Arteta this season, with the Arsenal manager often preferring Kai Havertz to lead the Gunners' attack.
The 27-year-old Brazilian has played a total of 1132 minutes of football action for Arsenal across all competitions. Jesus has registered a total of seven goals and two assists in 25 games for the Gunners.
Next up for Arsenal and Jesus, an EFL semi-final first-leg clash against Newcastle United on Tuesday, January 7.
