Jesus came off the bench in Sunday’s 3-0 win at Fulham to make his first appearance for the club since suffering a knee injury while playing for Brazil at the World Cup.
The return of Jesus is a major boost for leaders Arsenal, who restored their five-point lead over Manchester City thanks to goals from Gabriel, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard.
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“So happy to be back,” Jesus tweeted. “And feels like I never left… What a win from this group! Let’s go, Gunners!”
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has warned Jesus has to win his place back in the team as the Gunners challenge for the Premier League title.
Leandro Trossard registered three assists in an impressive display as the central striker before being replaced for the final 13 minutes by Jesus.
Arteta said: “[It is a] big boost [to have him back]. The first step today. We didn’t know if it was the right game today. He said to me a few days ago ‘I’m still missing something.’ Yesterday I looked in his eyes and he said ‘I’m ready.’ I said ‘OK.’
“It’s great to have him back. [But] he has to earn his place like in any other team. We have alternatives who can play in different positions and we have different goals as well to fill in relation to the chemistry of the players and what we ask them to do. It’s a great problem to have, believe me.
“We try to adapt to the quality of players that we have, to put them in their strengths and position where we want as much as possible. Leo [Leandro Trossard] has very different qualities to Gabi, Martin [Odegaard] complements him really well in terms of the space and understanding with him. It’s great to have that versatility.”
