Arsenal star Gabriel Jesus has explained how injury to William Saliba cost his side the Premier League title to Manchester City last season. It comes after a transformative campaign for the Gunners that saw them from perennial Champions League outsiders to trophy challengers.
The signings of Jesus alongside Oleksandr Zinchenko and the return of Saliba from a loan spell with Marseille helped take Mikel Arteta's team to new heights. A blistering start to the season saw the north London outfit set the pace for the majority of the campaign, with each game strengthening their title credentials.
The World Cup break in November complicated things, with Jesus getting injured after an ideal start to his career at the Emirates Stadium. But even his absence couldn't seemingly stop their push, with Eddie Nketiah and later Leandro Trossard helping to fill the void.
Things took a turn for the worst later in the campaign though as serious injuries to Saliba and Takehiro Tomiyasu left Mikel Arteta scratching his head looking for answers in his backline. Rob Holding was the initial option picked to partner Gabriel Magalhaes before Jakub Kiwior was given the nod in his place.
By then, the title was all but gone as the dropped points stacked against Arsenal and City continued their run of dominance in the league. For Jesus, the turning point was the injury to Saliba, claiming that the way the team played without the Frenchman completely changed.
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He told the Denilson Show Podcast: "When I got injured, Eddie [Nketiah] replaced me very well. Then we signed Leo [Trossard]. We kept the pace.
"But when [William] Saliba got injured, it was complicated. The other defenders are good, but we were playing in a certain way. Look at the stats we concede a lot less with him."
With the impending signing of Jurrien Timber from Ajax alongside the current backline options, it remains to be seen whether such a repeat is possible or if Arsenal are now better placed to push for the Premier League title.
