Hello all! The transfer window is open and the fact that we’re going about our business with speed is heart warming. But I’m sure none would dispute the fact that speed is nothing without direction. Our pursuit of Gabriel Jesus has been making the rounds daily and as at the time of writing this piece, he hasn’t been signed. While I certainly would not be vexed by seeing him at Arsenal, I’m also not going to be too excited either. He’s a good player (and has shown that) but I don’t know if he’s exactly what we need? My reasons are as follows:
The list below consists of strikers with their respective heights:
Man City: Haaland 1.94m
Man Utd: Ronaldo 1.87m
Chelsea: Lukaku 1.91m
Spurs: Kane 1.88m
Liverpool: Nunez 1.87m
Bayern: Lewandowski 1.85m
Madrid: Benzema 1.85m
Juventus: Vlahovic 1.90m
Napoli: Osimhen 1.85m
Inter Milan: Dzeko 1.93m
AC Milan:Giroud 1.93m Ibrahimovic 1.95
The above are central forwards for the biggest and best clubs in Europe. Four of them are league winners of four out of the top five leagues this season just concluded. Admittedly, not all big clubs have tall strikers as in the case of PSG. But they’ve got Messi and Neymar on either side of Mbappe. Napoli may not exactly be one of them, but you get the gist. Why do big clubs have tall strikers? Why are we continually linked with Napoli’s Osimhen? Is there something about being tall as a modern day striker? I really think so. If Jesus comes, we would be having
Arsenal
Nketiah: 1.80m
Jesus: 1.75m
He’s shorter than Nketiah which sends some cold shivers down my spine. We are usually hopeful in corners because of Magalhaes. He’s 1.90m tall. I don’t think it’s too much to have a Magalhaes at the back and another in the attack to put away the crosses (and Arteta likes them).
Another reason why I’m skeptical about Jesus is that I don’t think he will be as committed to the badge as Arteta might demand. Remember Aubameyang and Özil being accused of not being committed enough? Ødegaard came from Madrid but unlike the two above, he has not achieved much in his career and therefore has a lot to play for. Jesus will (may) arrive on a huge transfer fee and large wages having achieved quite a lot at City which is a bigger club than us (recent trophies and footballing talents only). He seems to need quite some convincing to drop down to the Europa League while it seems that Tottenham Hotspur is interested in him. I can bet which of the two North London clubs he will choose if it comes to that. Reports say that Lisandro Martinez is adding some push for the deal bringing him to Arsenal. While I’m not asking Jesus to clash with his club, I do believe the transfer would have been wrapped up if he had been pushing for it. He’s probably bidding his time to see if there’s a better club or better offer than Arsenal can give. This isn’t fact though. I also didn’t want Locatelli because he needed convincing to sign for us, and I’m glad we didn’t get him.
My final reason is that there is/are better targets. Given the constant links, I see no indication that Osimhen would not sign for us if we seriously go for him. I would rather pay Napoli’s asking price of £85m for Osimhen than pay £50m for Jesus. He’s younger and has more of the traits we need than Jesus does. This is not exactly a post calling out for Osimhen. I’m just using him as an example of what we need. So in summary;
1. Jesus is short
2. Jesus will most likely be here for just the money without real commitment, rather than for sporting reasons
3. There are better players who are possibly available.
Finally, if Jesus is the only striker we get this summer, I won’t be too disappointed as I believe he will still raise the quality of our frontline given what we have. Welcome to Arsenal Gabriel Jesus. You have my full support
dgr8xt
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