Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted that the ‘significant injury’ suffered by Brazil star Gabriel Jesus will force his side to be active in the January transfer window.
Jesus suffered a bad knee injury while on national team duty at Qatar’s just-concluded FIFA World Cup. As a result, he was sent home early from the tournament to undergo surgery at the start of December.
No timescale has been put on his return, but Arsenal is expecting that the injury will rule him out for at least three months. Given the length of his injury, Arsenal boss Arteta has confirmed the forward’s absence will ensure the Gunners do business next month.
Speaking to the press recently, the Gunners boss said, “I never gave a date. I said that we don’t know. It’s gonna take some time for sure.”
“He’s gone through surgery, and that tells you the extent of the injury, so we will be in the market always active, and we will assess the biggest opportunities that we have.
“We are going to be active and active means we are looking to strengthen the team.
“This squad still doesn’t have the luxury of not maximising every single window. We have to do that because it’s really important, but then we have to get the right profile. It has to be the right player to take us to the next level.”
Jesus had been a key member of the Arsenal squad, sitting on top of the Premier League table after 15 games. Although he had failed to score in his last ten games for the club, the Brazilian had spearheaded Arsenal’s attack and been a key creative force with six assists and five goals in the top flight this season.
Arteta added that his miss is a big blow but admitted his side would have to carry on without the 25-year-old.
“Obviously, a huge blow with Gabriel Jesus and his injury,” Arteta said.
“We’ll miss him for a period of time. The season has challenges, that’s a challenge we have to overcome, but if you’re going to be at the top, there’s going to be those challenges.
“With Gabi, it’s difficult to put a time frame because it was a significant injury. Knowing him, I prefer not to give any dates.”
