Arteta sends warning to Gabriel Jesus over Arsenal spot
Mikel Arteta has informed Gabriel Jesus that he will need to prove himself to secure a spot in the Arsenal squad, following his return from a lengthy injury.
Jesus had been absent since December due to a knee injury sustained while playing for Brazil at the World Cup.
However, the striker made his much-anticipated comeback in Sunday’s match against Fulham, coming on for Trossard during the final 13 minutes of a 3-0 victory.
Trossard had provided assists for all three of Arsenal’s goals, which gave them a five-point lead over Manchester City in the Premier League.
Arteta is happy to have Gabriel Jesus back on the team as they prepare for the rest of the season, but he has cautioned the striker that he will need to compete for his place in the squad.
“He has to earn his place like in any other team,” said Arteta. “We have alternatives who can play in different positions and we have different goals as well to fill in relation to the chemistry of the players and what we ask them to do. It’s a great problem to have, believe me.
“We didn’t know if it was the right game today [to bring Jesus back]. He said to me a few days ago ‘I’m still missing something.’ Yesterday I looked into his eyes and he said ‘I’m ready’. I said ‘OK!’ So then we had the opportunity to throw him in. It’s that first step to give him the big boost.
“He looks free, he looks ready and straight away he generated those two big chances. It’s great to have him back.”
Arteta has praised Trossard’s performance in the match against Fulham and acknowledged his significant contribution to the team since he joined Arsenal from Brighton for a transfer fee of £26 million in January.
“We try to adapt to the quality of players that we have, to put them in their strengths and position where we want as much as possible,” said Arteta. “Leo has very different qualities to Gabi [Martinelli], Martin [Odegaard] complements him really well in terms of the space and understanding with him. It’s great to have that versatility.
“When we talk about composure and finding the right pass and finding the right colour when it’s looking really blurry in the box, he (Trossard) is the opposite. He got three assists and could have scored two.
“I think he was really impressive. Not only that, he had an injury three days ago which could have taken a week, or another 10 days, but he was really willing to come back early and the doctors and medical staff did a lot of good work to get that.
“It makes a big difference in the team. We needed him today and his contribution was superb. It’s football intelligence. He’s really clever to understand straight away what we want, what’s required. He’s executed it really well.”
Arteta sends warning to Gabriel Jesus over Arsenal spot
