Arsenal have today confirmed their third summer signing after agreeing a deal to bring Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus to the Emirates.
The 25-year-old was Arsenal's priority transfer target this summer as Mikel Arteta and Edu looked to strengthen their attack, with Jesus scoring eight goals and registering eight assists for City in the Premier League last season. With Erling Haaland on his way to Man City, Jesus' first-team football would have been limited at City next season but the Brazilian wished to stay in the Premier League.
Jesus has taken the number nine shirt for the Gunners after Eddie Nketiah recently signed a new long-term deal to stay in north London, switching to the historic number 14 shirt. The Brazilian only had a year left on his deal at City and Edu had held positive talks with the player's camp over the past few months before the club confirmed they had sealed a £45million deal to bring Jesus to the Emirates ahead of next season.
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So, now Jesus has made the move to Arsenal ahead of the 2022/23 season, what sort of impact could he have on Mikel Arteta's side? To find out, we simulated the 2022/23 season with Jesus in the Gunners' squad and this is what happened.
Gabriel Jesus' superb impact for Arsenal next season predicted
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for Jesus to join Arsenal ahead of the start of the 2022/23 season, using FM22 to run the simulation. This is how Jesus' in-game profile looks on FM22.
The 25-year-old has shown impressive form when given a chance in the starting line-up at City, scoring 93 goals and registering 46 assists in 230 appearances in all competitions. The Brazil international's key attributes are his Dribbling (16), Technique (16), Flair (16), Off The Ball (16), Work Rate (16), Acceleration (16) and Agility (17).
These attributes may suggest Jesus is a better winger than a striker, as shown by Guardiola utilising the Brazilian on the right-wing for the majority of this season. However, Jesus' ability to press from the front could suit Arsenal's play style more with his versatility allowing the front four attackers to interchange positions throughout the game making it harder for opposition teams to defend against.
Jesus had an incredible debut season under Arteta, scoring 23 goals and registering three assists in 51 appearances across all competitions. The Brazilian was the Premier League's third-highest goal scorer with 15 goals in 33 games as Jesus averaged a goal contribution every other game for the Gunners.
With just an xG rating of 7.38 in the Premier League and returning 15 goals, it highlights how Jesus was able to turn half-chances into goals and give Arsenal's young attack the clinical edge it needed in front of goal. The Brazil international averaged a match rating of 7.25 across all competitions for the Gunners, ranking him as the third-best performer at the club, only behind Bukayo Saka (7.43) and Martin Odegaard (7.32).
Jesus was able to demonstrate his passing ability averaging a pass completion rate of 84% in all competitions, the second-best out of any attacker at the club. The 25-year-old was able to average a tackle success rate of 67% for the Gunners in all competitions showing he can press from the front and win the ball back in higher areas of the pitch in Arteta's system.
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2022 put together an overall best Arsenal XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what the Gunners' best XI looked like at the end of the 2022/23 season as predicted by Football Manager 2022:
Full Arsenal best XI (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale; Tomiyasu, Gabriel, White, Tierney; Partey, Xhaka; Saka, Odegaard, Smith Rowe; Jesus.
Jesus led the line for Arteta's side replacing Alexandre Lacazette in the starting line-up. Whilst Arsenal did strengthen other areas of the pitch including midfield and defence with the signing of William Carvalho and the return of William Saliba, neither player made it into the best XI for the 2022/23 season.
So, how did Arsenal perform in the league and cup competitions after signing Jesus ahead of the 2022/23 season? Lets take a look.
Arsenal's results from the 2022/23 simulation
Arsenal finished fourth in the Premier League at the end of the 2022/23 season, qualifying for the Champions League ahead of north London rivals Tottenham. Arteta's side weren't able to close the gap to the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City despite Jesus adding a significant attacking threat to the side.
Arsenal finished the season with the fourth-best goal difference in the division and third-best attacking threat, with their defensive record letting them down when chasing the top three. In comparison to their 2021/22 season, the Gunners had three more points and lost three times fewer.
In the cup competitions, Arsenal came close on a couple of occasions but ultimately were unlucky not to finish the season with a trophy. A defeat in the Europa League final to Manchester United and to Newcastle in the Carabao Cup semi-finals, along with a narrow defeat to Man City in the FA Cup fifth round saw the Gunners end the season without any silverware, showing further improvements could be needed at the club.
Overall, after Arsenal signed Gabriel Jesus ahead of the 2022/23 season, this simulation predicts that the Brazilian striker could have an impressive season for the Gunners next season, scoring 23 goals in 51 appearances across all competitions. Despite the Brazilian's brilliant performances, Arsenal's defensive performance saw the club finish lower than expected given the strength in attack.
Are you happy with the signing of Gabriel Jesus? Let us know in the comments!
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The three key reasons Edu and Mikel Arteta made Gabriel Jesus Arsenal's summer transfer priority
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