Arsenal supporters will be counting down the days for when Gabriel Jesus is available for selection following yet another encouraging update with regard to his recovery from knee surgery.
Last summer's £45m signing from Manchester City has been sidelined since the beginning of December after suffering medial ligament damage whilst in action for Brazil at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and with the issue worse than initially feared an operation was required and subsequently completed successfully.
In the weeks since undergoing surgery, the 25-year-old has kept Arsenal fans in the loop with how his recovery is coming along and most recently Instagram footage - courtesy of the forward's personal trainer, Andre Cunha, has emerged showing him running outside on the grass.
READ MORE: Arsenal signing in line to replace Gabriel Martinelli as injured star could return vs Brentford
With Jesus seemingly not too far away from rejoining the senior squad in full training, naturally the discussion amongst the Gunners' fanbase is centred around when the striker will be back in action in a bid to bolster the club's pursuit of lifting the Premier League trophy come May.
Well, there are a couple of factors that indicate the Brazilian's likely return date. The first being what he said following the 3-2 win over Manchester United a fortnight ago where he revealed to former UFC Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, that he hoped to be back playing within "four to five weeks".
A timeline for this would either be the penultimate weekend of this month when Arsenal face Unai Emery's Aston Villa away from home or the following weekend when the north London outfit are on the road again as they visit the King Power Stadium for a showdown with Leicester City.
Although, it's worth keeping in mind that at the time of Jesus' comments, he was just short of seven weeks removed from surgery so he is very much on schedule to, at least, be back in full training before the end of the month - a scenario that was outlined by medical expert Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT.
"Return timeline after MCL surgery is typically 10-12 weeks," he wrote on Twitter. "Ligament heals quite well due to robust blood supply. Granit Xhaka was back in 70 days & would’ve been sooner if not for the accompanying fracture as well. True timeline will be wait and see."
However, it should be noted that given Mikel Arteta's cautious approach with players returning from long-term injuries, it could be that Jesus isn't considered for selection until March where the Gunners face Everton, Bournemouth, Fulham and Crystal Palace in the Premier League as well as a round of 16 Europa League tie which is yet to be determined.
With that said, considering Reiss Nelson is back in training following a hamstring injury and Emile Smith Rowe's thigh strain not thought to be too serious, it means that once Jesus is fully fit the only-long term casualty will be Mohamed Elneny. Having a near fully-fit first-team squad is certainly a dream scenario for Arteta as his side look to compete on two fronts.
READ NEXT:
Declan Rice completes first step for record Arsenal deal as social media clip goes viral
Premier League make major decision ahead of Arsenal vs Man City with referee announcement
Mikel Arteta told to make Ben White decision as Arsenal dilemma looms ahead of Brentford
Gabriel Jesus, Emile Smith Rowe: Arsenal injury news and return dates ahead of Brentford clash
Arsenal news and transfers LIVE: All the latest news, rumours and gossip from the Emirates Stadium
