Arsenal planning tribute to injured teammate Gabriel Jesus ahead of north London Derby against Tottenham: Reports
Arsenal are reportedly planning to pay tribute to their injured striker, Gabriel Jesus, ahead of Wednesday's north London derby at the Emirates Stadium (January 15). A report from Daily Mail claims that the Gunners will wear specially designed shirts for this occasion when they host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.
The Brazilian attacker was forced off in the FA Cup third-round defeat to Manchester United on Sunday (January 12). Subsequently, the Gunners announced that the former Manchester City man had suffered an ACL injury in his left knee, which is set to keep him out of action for the rest of the season.
As a tribute to Jesus, Arsenal will reportedly sport shirts carrying the former's name and jersey number with a get well soon message. He is set to be a big miss for Mikel Arteta's team, especially because of his form before the injury.
Prior to the cup tie against Manchester United, Jesus registered six goals in as many matches across competitions. Attention will now turn to Kai Havertz, who will be the most likely candidate to occupy the striker's position against Spurs.
The German forward has had a decent campaign up until this point, netting 12 times in 27 appearances across competitions. However, he is under pressure after missing a couple of glorious opportunities to score against the Red Devils over the weekend.
Mikel Arteta sends message to Arsenal fans ahead of north London derby
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta wants to create a special atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium when they take on their north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
The Gunners head into this tie with a chance to close the gap to four points between themselves and Premier League leaders Liverpool. Speaking ahead of the tie, Arteta said (via the club's official website):
"It’s probably the nicest game of the season to watch because of the atmosphere, because of what it means to our people, what it means to us and everybody involved in the game."
"This is something that is in our hands, for example. Let’s create the best atmosphere that we have played at the Emirates, that’s our objective. That's something that we control, the players, the staff, and everybody that turns up tomorrow."
Arsenal will be looking to turn things around after back-to-back losses to Manchester United and Newcastle United in cup fixtures. They also drew their latest English top-flight match against Brighton on January 4.
