"I was surprised and I am a big fan of him" - Gabriel Jesus says he couldn't believe how good Arsenal star was when he first saw him
Arsenal's new No. 9 Gabriel Jesus has revealed his surprise at how good his teammate Gabriel Martinelli was when he first met him.
The duo are both Brazil internationals, but Jesus now has an opportunity to play alongside Martinelli on a weekly basis following his summer move from Manchester City.
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New season, New challenge! 2022/2023 🔴⚪️🙌🏽🙏🏽 https://t.co/s3OYtR4eg6
The 25-year-old forward scored 95 goals in 236 appearances across competitions for the Cityzens over the last six years. He looks set to become Arsenal's first-choice centre-forward this season.
Jesus took part in a quickfire Q&A with the club's official website, where he was asked about the first time he met Martinelli. The forward replied (as quoted by The Boot Room):
“Martinelli was with the national team. He came to complete the training session with us.
“So, I saw him playing young, and I was so surprised because I didn’t know him. That season, I was following him, because he’s so good a player, I was surprised, and I’m a big fan of him.”
Martinelli has blossomed into one of the Gunners' leading young players following his arrival in 2019, having netted 18 times in 84 appearances.
The 21-year-old faces stiff competition to break into Mikel Arteta's starting lineup for the upcoming campaign. The likes of Martin Odegaard, Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka are all challenging for his place. New signings Jesus and Fabio Vieira will also be contenders to start in attack.
Isn’t talked about enough how Gabriel Martinelli came from the 3rd tier of Brazilian football.
Elite player. Elite scouting. 🇧🇷 https://t.co/DmXBBhH5vH
Gabriel Jesus' Arsenal teammate describes him as 'one of the best in the world'
Gabriel Jesus has enjoyed an excellent pre-season with the Gunners, which culminated with him scoring a hat-trick against Sevilla.
Jesus' Brazil teammate Martinelli was full of praise for the forward after the clash at the Emirates Stadium. FourFourTwo quoted the youngster as telling reporters:
"For me, he is one of the best strikers in the world. I am happy to have him here and it is a pleasure to play with him. I hope I give a lot of assists for him and we go to the national team together."
Martinelli also revealed that he and defender Gabriel Magalhaes had been trying to convince Jesus to join them at the north London club for some time. Martinelli further added:
"Me and Gabi were always saying to him, ‘come to Arsenal', and you can see what he is doing now. Of course, he knows how to win. He's going to be important for us this season, not just scoring goals but giving us advice as well."
Gabriel Jesus is currently the most picked player in Fantasy Football history, with 71.5% of players picking the Arsenal forward 😮 https://t.co/JpxegBliyE