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Gabriel Jesus can help Arsenal discover a “winning mentality” after joining from Premier League champions Manchester City, according to his new Gunners team-mate Emile Smith Rowe.
Brazil striker Jesus left Pep Guardiola’s team for Arsenal in a deal worth around £45million after starting just 28 games in all competitions last season, scoring 13 goals.
Only Riyad Mahrez (24), Kevin De Bruyne (19), Raheem Sterling (17) and Phil Foden (14) outscored Jesus for City last term despite his limited playing time, as Guardiola’s men successfully defended their title by a single point ahead of Liverpool.
Meanwhile, only Lionel Messi (291), Sterling (186), De Bruyne (175) and Sergio Aguero (151) can better Jesus’ tally of 136 goal contributions under Guardiola’s management, with the forward winning 10 pieces of silverware in his time with City.
Despite Jesus only turning 25 in April, Smith Rowe believes his experience of featuring for an elite side will benefit the Gunners.
“He’s been fantastic since he came in, it feels like he’s been here for a couple of years,” he told the Evening Standard.
“Everyone knows how good he is, and we can’t wait to get started with him. Man City are a big club and they’ve won a lot recently.
“It would be good if he could bring that [winning] mentality and help us out.”
Jesus netted in Arsenal’s friendly win over Everton last time out, taking him to three goals in two pre-season appearances for his new side.
But the 25-year-old is not the only signing made by Mikel Arteta during the transfer window, with Porto’s 22-year-old midfielder Fabio Vieira joining for an initial fee of £30million (€35m).
And Smith Rowe was keen to emphasise Vieira’s similarity to another Portuguese midfielder, namely City’s Bernardo Silva, as he hailed his creative talents.
“He’s very similar [to Silva],” Smith Rowe said of Vieira. “He’s a very good passer of the ball, his left foot is very good, and he likes to create goals and score them himself.
“I’ve already played against him at international level, so I can’t speak highly enough of him, and the fans should be really excited. At the Euro Under-21s, they [Portugal] beat us 2-0 and he was unbelievable in that game.”
Arsenal will feature in the Europa League after a late-season collapse saw rivals Tottenham beat them to a top-four Premier League finish last time out, and Smith Rowe says the Gunners are desperate to atone for that disappointment in the 2022-23 campaign.
“It’s definitely tough looking back on it, it was in our hands. The Spurs game [a 3-0 defeat in May]… it was tough. It wasn’t a nice atmosphere. All the boys were down,” he recalled.
“The manager picked us up and we had another chance after that, but it didn’t go our way in the end.
“Going forward, we have just got to stick together as a team. We are a young team, we are still getting there. It’s fuel for us going forward and we can’t wait to start the season.
“It will be a good season, a tough season. The big clubs are buying players and every season is hard, but we are confident.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve been in the Champions League. We need to get back in it, not just for us but for the fans as well.”
