When 10 Arsenal players departed for the World Cup last month, above all else Mikel Arteta would have wanted Gabriel Jesus to return fit.
Jesus was instrumental for the Premier League leaders before the break, transforming their attack following his £45million move from Manchester City in the summer. But Arsenal have been dealt a major blow and fear their No9 could be out for three months after he suffered a knee injury playing for Brazil in Qatar.
How the Gunners cope without him will go a long way to determining whether they can maintain their title challenge. Eddie Nketiah is the only other recognised striker in the Arsenal squad and initially will be expected to step up and replace Jesus, starting at home to West Ham on Boxing Day.
The temptation, certainly among supporters, is for Arsenal to dip into the transfer market to solve the problem and they are looking to add more firepower to their forward line. The club is in talks with Shakhtar Donetsk over a deal for Ukraine winger Mykhaylo Mudryk, with a wide forward their No1 priority in January.
Mudryk, who is still only 21, would bring assists and goals from out wide, which would alleviate the pressure on Nketiah and also allow Arteta the chance to utilise either Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli as a striker.
Arteta and his coaching staff have considered both of those options before, but none of Martinelli, Nketiah or Smith Rowe can directly replace what Jesus brings. Critics of the Brazilian will highlight his lack of goals, but he brings much more to the side. He is vital to Arsenal’s link-play and it is little surprise that Bukayo Saka and Martinelli have thrived playing alongside him.
“He is a very, very, very, very important player for us and it’s not good to hear the news,” said Saka after he learned Jesus was injured.
Nketiah can bring elements of what Jesus does, particularly without the ball. He too is a relentless presser and should help Arsenal maintain their ability to defend from the front. The 23-year-old, however, is much more of a penalty-box striker compared to Jesus and that will require some adaption to how Arsenal play.
How Arsenal cope without Jesus will go a long way to determining whether they can maintain their title challenge
Nketiah has worked on his all-round game, doing extra sessions after training, but it is still not at the level of Jesus. To compensate, Martin Odegaard will have to take on even greater responsibility in his role as a creator, while Martinelli and Saka could be charged with getting more balls into the box for Nketiah.
Should Arsenal want to go into the transfer market, there are strikers available. Memphis Depay has six months left on his contract at Barcelona and can leave next month, while Lille’s Jonathan David and Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix have previously been scouted.
That would represent a deviation from Arsenal’s long-term transfer plans, though, and also a lack of trust in Nketiah, to whom the club handed a five-year deal only six months ago.
A small positive for Arsenal was that they learned about the injury to Jesus at the start of this month, giving them their mid-season break in Dubai to get Nketiah ready for the challenge that lies ahead. He has big shoes to fill.
