Gabriel Jesus was the laughingstock of coming full time on Saturday. The Arsenal striker watched the last half hour of this win from the bench, but after the whistle, Jesús returned to the pitch head first and put the ball under his arm.
He was wearing a smile; behind him, Gabriel Martinelli could only point and laugh. ‘Hat-trick’, he laughed the end.
He had a point. Two goals don’t usually qualify players for any match day souvenirs. But perhaps, after the striker helped disfigure Leeds in another display of cunning and mayhem, we can also allow him to break the rules. You can certainly understand why the Arsenal staff and players applauded his talisman in the dressing room.
This had been a long time coming. Jesus had not started in the Premier League since mid-November. He had not scored for the club or for the national team since October 1.
Arteta had suggested before this game that Jesus was regressing towards his prime. That he was wreaking havoc in training once again. Here was the evidence that Jesus appears poised to play a pivotal role in Arsenal’s title bid.
Gabriel Jesus scored twice as Arsenal beat Leeds 4-1 on Saturday night
His first goal, a penalty in the first half, was the product of Jesús’s industriousness and intelligence. He ran left. His first foray into the box came to nothing. Before long, he regained possession once more: a feint fooled Rasmus Kristensen. Another put Luke Ayling on his butt. The defender struck down Jesus; Jesus got up to score from the spot.
Until then, Leeds had been the most threatening while Arsenal stuttered without Bukayo Saka. But that goal put them on course for a seventh successive league win.
The second, through Ben White shortly after the break, turned much of the second half into an exhibition. Before long, Jesus had stretched the leash with an excellent illustration of his craft.
Number 9 swerved to the right, allowing Leandro Trossard to enter. Jesus picked up the ball in space, spun and launched a pass at Trossard’s feet. As the Belgian worked the gap to cross, Jesus ran to the box in time to find him. The stark celebration of him, doubled over by the corner flag, spoke to all the pent up emotion and energy.
In Jesús’s absence, Eddie Nketiah scored six goals in his first six games leading the line – more, at the time, than the Brazilian had managed all season – while Trossard settled into the team and added cunning and flexibility. . Jesús is in Mikel Arteta’s leadership group and was still doing his bit, offering advice to Nketiah and support for his teammates.
‘When you’re injured it doesn’t mean you have nothing to do,’ Granit Xhaka said afterwards. ‘You know exactly when and how to help and Gabi has been excellent because it’s not always easy for him to be out for three or four months. But he was very positive in the dressing room and that’s what we need.’
Now Arsenal need cool heads and cold hearts to keep Manchester City at bay, starting at Anfield next weekend. This was a reminder that no one offers what Jesus can offer.
Jesus’ return to goal is a huge boost for the league-leading Gunners.
Nketiah might be the most reliable threat. None of Trossard, Saka or Martinelli are worth missing out on either. But neither offer the number 9 cocktail of intensity and intelligence and industry.
“He is a very, very special player,” Xhaka said. And particularly useful given that, as he pointed out, “teams are playing us very deep right now.”
“I am very happy for him because he has worked very hard with the support and help of the staff during the last five months,” said Arteta. And today he was rewarded for it.
The goals, curiously, come as a welcome bonus. Jesus scored five in his first nine league games, following a £45m move from City last summer.
Even after they dried up, his influence on this side never wavered. What the numbers may never show, for example, is the influence of Jesus on those around him.
The way his movement unlocks defenses and opens space. The way his tendency to drift frees up Martinelli and Trossard to launch into the center. Is it pure coincidence that Xhaka, scorer of Arsenal’s fourth goal, has returned to his scoring form since Jesus returned to form?
‘Everyone is playing very well. They made it easy for me,’ said Jesús.
Over the next nine games, his appetite for chaos can also make life a lot easier for this team.