Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus is high on the wishlist of Real Madrid, who are looking for a long-term successor to Karim Benzema
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Arsenal are facing the prospect of having to fight to keep Gabriel Jesus.
The Gunners only signed the Brazilian last summer in a deal worth around £45 million, when Jesus joined from Manchester City. The move was seen as a huge coup for Mikel Arteta's side – and their new No.9 has helped to spearhead a title challenge, with Arsenal eight points ahead of City in the Premier League.
But Real Madrid are said to be interested in Jesus – and they only failed to pursue him last season on a technicality.
Gabriel Jesus has been a massive hit at the Emirates Stadium (Image credit: Getty Images)
Spanish rules prevent more than three non-EU players in a squad, with Los Blancos unable to challenge for Jesus while they had Eder Militao, Rodrygo and Vinicius Jr holding those spots in their squad. Since, however, Vinicius Jr has qualified for a Spanish passport.
This would mean that Real are free to buy another Brazilian – and reports suggest they have their eyes on Arsenal's superstar striker.
According to Defensa Central, the European champions view Jesus as the ideal replacement for Karim Benzema. At 35, the current Ballon d'Or holder is winding down – though Jesus is versatile enough to slot in on the right of the Frenchman if need be.
Arsenal won't want to lose Jesus – especially this soon into their project – but they have fair reason to expect that he will remain.
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Arsenal will be loathed to lose their star striker (Image credit: Getty Images)
After the last game before the World Cup against Wolves, Jesus told FFT that the club felt like a "family" and after making such a big move to north London, he would be unlikely to leave after just a season. Arsenal have him tied to a big contract and would no doubt demand double for his services.
Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.
