Gabriel Jesus had to play as a winger for much of his Manchester City career but his 45-minute Arsenal debut proved that he has not forgotten how to be a striker.
Jesus scored two goals and also applied pressure which resulted in two own goals as the Gunners beat Nurnberg 5-3 in their first pre-season friendly of 2022.
After signing for £45m from City, Jesus was introduced as a half-time substitute in Germany with Arsenal 2-0 down after a disappointing start by new keeper Matt Turner.
It took Jesus just 85 seconds to score his first Gunners goal as he played a one-two with Eddie Nketiah before smashing a shot inside the Nurnberg keeper’s near post.
Gabriel Jesus scored his first Arsenal goal 85 seconds into his debut
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The Brazilian’s link-up play with Nketiah was highly impressive.
It is widely expected that Jesus, Arsenal’s new no.9, will mostly be deployed as a central striker in a 4-2-3-1 system this season, demoting Nketiah to the bench.
But Jesus and Nketiah played alongside each other as a traditional strike duo in Germany where Nurnberg could not cope.
Jesus and Eddie Nketiah (right) combined to great effect during Arsenal’s 5-3 win over Nurnberg
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After Mohamed Elneny drew Arsenal level at 2-2, many viewers thought Jesus had headed in his second goal to make it 3-2.
But replays showed that Christopher Schindler, in an attempt to stop Jesus from scoring, had diverted the ball into the net himself.
Arsenal’s next strike was also an own goal and again it was a consequence of pressure from Jesus.
Nketiah rifled in a shot which hit the crossbar and then rebounded off Tim Handwerker. Handwerker’s deflection sent the ball goalwards and he was unable to rectify the situation as Jesus used his body to shield the ball into the net.
Jesus then produced a clever flicked finish following a cross by Martinelli to make it 5-3 and complete the scoring.
Next up for Arsenal is a game against Everton at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium on July 16.
