According to Emmanuel Petit, Gabriel Jesus is “not a match-winner” like Erling Haaland, and Arsenal is being asked to add more “quality” to their ranks in January.
The Arsenal have had a successful start to the 2022-23 season, with 11 wins and 34 points from 13 games, propelling them to the top of the Premier League standings. Shrewd transfer activity over the summer yielded an immediate return, but Petit believes money will need to be spent again over the winter in order to maintain a title fight, with Brazil international striker Jesus presently on a nine-game goalless streak.
“I’ve been very pleased with the way that Arsenal have been playing since the beginning of the season.” former Arsenal midfielder Petit told LordPing. “They deserved to win against Chelsea, but I still believe there is a gap between them and Man City because of two things; the depth of the squad, you can’t compare the quality of the bench between their side.”
“Secondly, Man City signed Erling Haaland to fill a void, and if you compare him with Gabriel Jesus,I really like Jesus but he’s not a match-winner and Haaland is. You can see that when he came off the bench against Fulham, he made a big difference in the game, and that is the difference. No one knows what Arsenal are going to do in the next transfer window, but they need to add quality players to the squad.”
A 1-0 derby triumph over London rivals Chelsea last time out was widely regarded as another title-clinching success for Arsenal, but Petit believes they will fall short in the end. “For me, Man City will win the Premier League title, Arsenal will finish second, Liverpool will finish third, and I believe Newcastle will overcome Tottenham, Chelsea, and Man United to fourth place,” the Frenchman continued.
