How many goals did Gabriel Jesus score on his Arsenal debut?
Gabriel Jesus has taken no time to settle in at his new club, getting off the mark with the first two minutes of his Arsenal debut.
Gabriel Jesus couldn’t have wished for a better start with his new club Arsenal. The 25-year-old was unveiled on Monday and made his debut, albeit in an unofficial game, against Nürnberg on Friday - the team’s second outing of the pre-season.
The 25-year-old, who joined the Gunners on a five-year deal from Manchester City for £45 million, started Friday’s friendly at Max-Morlock-Stadion on the bench. Mikel Arteta brought him on at the start of the second half with his side trailing 2-0 - within 85 seconds of the restart, Gabigol had pulled a goal back for the visitors, getting off the mark less than two minutes into his debut.
Wearing the No.9 shirt, Gabriel Jesus picked the ball up in midfield and made a beeline for goal, playing a one-two with Nketiah then beating Christian Mathenia at his near post with a fierce finish. Elneny levelled it up just a few minutes later, unleashing a piledriver from a full 30 yards out.
Flicked finish
Christopher Schindler turned the ball into his own net while under pressure from Gabriel Jesus just before the hour mark - as did Tim Handwerker moments later to make it 2-4 to the visitors. Lukas Schleimer slammed home to finish off a tidy passing move by Nürnberg but Gabriel Jesus had the final word by grabbing his second of the match just a couple of minutes later. Lurking inside the box, he darted between two defenders to get on the end of a ball whipped in by compatriot Gabriel Martinelli and flick in Arsenal’s fifth and his second of the evening.
A dream start for Arsenal’s new arrival, who believes the best is yet to come: “I’m very happy - for the confidence, not just for myself but for the team. We started the pre-season with a very good game. I was excited about starting with the lads, that’s my dream - a new challenge, a new opportunity at a big club like Arsenal. It’s difficult when you score two or three goals in your first game because people expect you to do it all the time but this is just the beginning of a long journey. We have a lot of amazing players, we’re going to do this together; I think this team is going to have a very good season”.
Arteta was also delighted to see Jesus open his account - especially in an area which he has been trying to strengthen. The Gunners boss told reporters after the game, “It was a position that we’ve been looking to improve for a long time and we are really happy that we managed to get him”.