Mikel Arteta may be forced into some cognitive thinking this month after Gabriel Jesus’ injury.
The Brazil international was forced off during Arsenal’s FA Cup third-round defeat against Manchester United at the weekend, with it suspected the 27-year-old is likely to miss the rest of the season.
Clutching his knee before being taken off on a stretcher at the Emirates Stadium, Arteta is now on the hunt for a new centre forward with Kai Havertz failing to impress in recent weeks.
Mikel Arteta says Gabriel Jesus’ injury is ‘not looking good’
“We know more now and it’s not looking at all,” said the Gunners boss when asked about Jesus’ injury. “We need to review with one more specialist, so we will probably have better information this afternoon.
“I don’t want to confirm anything until we’ve had the final report. It’s the doctor’s job to do that, but we were very worried straight away after the game and we are very worried today. Let’s wait until the tests.”
Transfer expert and journalist Ben Jacobs believes Arsenal may have no choice but to use the January market to their advantage, with time ticking down before the deadline on February 3.
“Arsenal might consider, if the right opportunity presents itself, adding a striker now and still moving for one of their bigger-name targets in the summer,” began Jacobs, speaking to FourFourTwo on January 13.
“What’s interesting about the Gabriel Jesus injury is that he was being earmarked not just to continue his form of late but potentially, along with Ethan Nwaneri, offer cover on the right-hand side, too, leaving Havertz to lead the line.
“So they’ve lost a player who could have covered Bukayo Saka and led the line – so there might be more of an urgency to do something in January.
🚨👀 Mikel Arteta confirms: “We are actively looking in the market to improve the squad. We are on it”.“Unfortunately, Gabriel Jesus’ injury is not looking good… we are very worried, waiting for the final report”. pic.twitter.com/6vAR70qHrxJanuary 14, 2025
In FourFourTwo’s view, Arsenal have a huge striker shortlist with the likes of Liam Delap, Bryan Mbuemo and Nico Williams all named. Now would be the perfect time for the Gunners to bite the bullet and sign that missing piece in attack, given their scattergun approach over the last few years.
Arsenal have a huge North London derby clash with Tottenham on Wednesday as Premier League action returns.
