Club chief says Arsenal have made player stance clear after January transfer enquiry made

Arsenal have already declared their stance over a player who is attracting interest ahead of the January transfer window. The Gunners oversaw a number of notable departures over the course of the summer transfer window, with Mikel Arteta and Edu needing to balance the books after back-to-back summers of big spending.

The likes of Eddie Nketiah, Emile Smith Rowe and Aaron Ramsdale all left the club, with the Gunners showing they are willing to cut big names in the name of improvement. One player who is currently battling to prove his worth is Gabriel Jesus, who us yet to score a goal this season, making seven Premier League appearances so far.

Though, the Brazilian has only started one league game, with Arteta preferring Kai Havertz in the striker role. The striker’s limited opportunities have led to questions over a possible departure, and Arteta himself has been honest, saying last month: "He put again a lot of work into it to come back and now he needs to get the rhythm. Now he needs to earn the right to play more."

In the meantime, Brazilian club Palmeiras are said to have expressed an interest ahead of the January transfer window, hoping to offer the striker a return to his home country, but the club’s president, Leila Pereira, has said that Arsenal have made it clear they are not interested in allowing him to leave.

"Gabriel Jesus is not coming," Pereira told ESPN. "We got in touch with Arsenal, and they said, 'Leila, there are no conditions whatsoever. We are not going to negotiate the player.' The subject is closed."

Arteta a big Jesus fan

Speaking in the summer amid talk of Jesus leaving Arsenal, Arteta made it clear that he is a big fan of the Brazilian’s. He said: “He [Jesus] looks really good, he looks really sharp. He’s changed a lot of things over the summer and he’s come back in top condition again. When you have that baseline, other things can be built but without that foundation we don’t have a player and he needs to be in that condition to get the best out of him.

"He’s realised that and I’m really happy with what he’s shown today again. You can see by the way he looks, the way he’s moving and you can see in his eyes that there’s a spark there.”