Depending on how Arsenal and Mikel Arteta solve their Gabriel Jesus conundrum, the Gunners have a serious shot at this season's Premier League title. The Gunners have, so far, surpassed nearly all challenges and expectations this season but will have to overcome another 28 to bring league success to north London.
Ahead of Monday's Premier League return clash against West Ham, Arsenal find themselves five points clear of Manchester City at the top of the tree. Prior to the World Cup, the Gunners defeated 12 of their first 14 opponents, failing to secure maximum points against only Manchester United and Southampton.
Arteta's side though have been dealt a number of serious blows to their season aspirations during the mid-season break. Gabriel Jesus is expected to be sidelined for at least three months while Reiss Nelson faces a period of "weeks not days" out of action after being forced off in last week's friendly with Juventus.
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football.london understands that the Gunners have prioritised a new attacker ahead of the January transfer window, with the club reportedly opening talks for Shakhtar Donetsk's Mykhaylo Mudryk. There have also been intensified reports linking multiple strikers with a move to the Emirates Stadium, including Ferran Torres and Joao Felix.
However, former Liverpool and England forward John Barnes has claimed that Arteta's side will "cope without" Jesus' presence upon the return of Premier League action. “I think Gabriel Jesus will be a big loss but Arsenal are playing with a lot of confidence and I think they will be able to cope without him," he told BonusCodeBets.
“I don’t think Jesus has set the world alight in terms of his goalscoring for Arsenal. He has added a lot of quality to their team though. The way Arsenal play means they are like Man City in terms of creativity and sharing the goals throughout the team. I don’t think Jesus will be as big a loss as people think.”
One player that has previously been deployed as a number nine is Gabriel Martinelli. The 21-year-old has enjoyed an impressive first half of the season with five league games, earning himself a place in Brazil World Cup squad.
And despite traditionally playing on the left of Arteta's attack, Martinelli has been backed to replace Jesus in the middle of the Gunners' front three by Barnes instead of a possible addition. “He (Jesus) will be a miss but they may go into the transfer market for a centre forward," Barnes continued.
With Saka and Martinelli who can also play up front they have a lot of options going forward. Martinelli was very good last season but this season has been a step up for him. Jurgen Klopp spoke about him last season and how dangerous he was against Liverpool.
“Martinelli has been fantastic for a couple of seasons now for Arsenal. He’s playing regularly now and he went to the World Cup with Brazil which is fantastic. I’ve known about him for a couple of years now and it doesn’t surprise me what he’s doing.”
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