£45m Arsenal star linked with intriguing summer move as Gunners eye replacements

Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus has recently become a hot topic of transfer conversation with recent reports indicating Arsenal would be prepared to sell him. The 27-year-old joined the Gunners in 2022 for £45 million and while he excelled in his opening fixtures, he was soon subjected to a plethora of injury concerns, even missing the World Cup with Brazil after rupturing his ACL.

As of April 3, Jesus had missed 31 of the 89 fixtures Arsenal played since he joined and as the Gunners ramp up their pursuit of striker Joshua Zirkzee, it would appear they could use the money made from a potential Jesus-sale to help them buy the £51m-rated Bologna man.

Arteta has made no secret of the fact that his side are seeking a consistent goal-scorer this summer with figures such as Brentford’s Ivan Toney and Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres being on the cards. News from Italy, however, indicates that the Gunners are closing in on securing the signature of Bologna’s 22-year-old rising star Zirkzee, fending off interest from Serie A giants AC Milan and Juventus.

Jesus is said to be aware of Arsenal’s plan to sell him and recent reports, as told by SportWitness, have indicated that the 27-year-old’s former club Palmeiras are interested in a reunion. Journalist Benjamin Back took to Twitter to reveal that the Verdao have a plan to get the striker but it requires a loan move which seems an unlikely scenario.

A report from Jorge Nicola also notes that the Palmeiras president Leila Pereira wishes to be re-elected at the end of the year and subsequently build the strongest squad possible which would include bringing Jesus back to the club.

However, the forward’s current salary is worth 1/3 of the Brazilian side’s salary sheet. Additionally, Jesus is highly likely to attract a lot of European interest and with Transfermarkt suggesting his current market value is in the region of £60m making it increasingly unlikely that the 27-year-old will head back to his childhood club.