Reporter Joe Shread has taken aim at one Arsenal star who failed to shine when Mikel Arteta needed him to step up v Aston Villa.
Arsenal saw their hopes of lifting the Premier League title for the first time in twenty years this season take an enormous blow as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Gunners came into the match in fantastic domestic form, having not yet lost a Premier League game since the turn of the year. However, perhaps with half an eye on Wednesday night’s second-leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie with Bayern Munich in Germany, Mikel Arteta made changes to his starting XI for this game.
Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard, and Oleksandr Zinchenko were all brought into the team, and arguably this contributed to the North London club’s loss of fluency and rhythm.
Whilst they played well in the first half, the Gunners missed a host of chances to go ahead, with Jesus and Trossard both guilty of spurning gilt-edged opportunities.
How Gabriel Jesus let Arsenal down v Aston Villa
This is not the first time that Jesus’ profligacy in front of goal has hurt the Gunners either. The Brazilian only has four Premier League strikes to his name this season, despite having made 22 appearances in the competition.
Jesus has previously made a vow to change his game in an effort to become more prolific, but when he had a fantastic chance to nod Arsenal ahead with a back-post header in the first half against Aston Villa he could only find the side-netting.
Jesus was given the chance to lead the line in this match ahead of Kai Havertz, who dropped back into the midfield trio. The former Manchester City man needed to take this opportunity to show that he can successfully spearhead the side when called upon. Whilst Havertz has shone as a striker in recent weeks, Jesus failed to deliver.
What next for Gabriel Jesus at Arsenal after failure to repay Mikel Arteta’s faith?
Jesus was taken off by Arteta with 79 minutes played. Havertz then moved up front, but it was too little, too late for Arsenal.
Reporting on the game for Sky Sports (14/04/2024, 18:08) from the Emirates Stadium at that time, Joe Shread stated, “Jesus failed his audition for regular minutes as Arsenal’s No 9. It’s crunch time and Arteta has decided to move Havertz up front instead.”
Arsenal have been linked with a host of strikers as talk of them needing a new goalscorer has been rife throughout the campaign. Jesus showed today why a more clinical presence at the top of the pitch is a must for the Gunners.
He may not get many more chances to prove that he can shoulder the burden of being Arteta’s main man in attack. Frankly, he probably doesn’t deserve many more chances.