Gabriel Jesus undergoes successful knee surgery – set for lengthy spell out

The worst fears of Arsenal fans have been realised with Arsenal confirming that Gabriel Jesus has undergone successful knee surgery.

Jesus reportedly entered the World Cup with pain in his right knee but he opted to play through the pain throughout the group stage as he earned two substitute appearances and a start. Brazil coach Tite, though, dismissed those reports as “evil lies”.

It was revealed in the wake of Brazil’s defeat to Cameroon that the striker will play no further part in the tournament as a result of suspected medial ligament damage.

At first, some suggested the Brazilian would return to action in the new year, while others were much more pessimistic.

Gabriel Jesus undergoes successful knee surgery – set for lengthy spell out

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Jesus recently returned to London to see a knee specialist and get a final opinion on whether it’s necessary to undergo surgery.

Then, on Tuesday afternoon, Arsenal confirmed that the striker has undergone an operation. The club wrote: “Gabriel Jesus has successfully undergone surgery to his right knee after suffering an injury during the Brazil v Cameroon World Cup group stage match on Friday.

“Gabby will now begin his rehabilitation programme.

“Everyone at the club is supporting Gabby and will be working hard to get him back on the pitch as soon as possible.”

This comes as a massive blow to the Gunners, who performed so well with Jesus leading the line in the opening 14 league games of the 2022/23 season. The Brazilian began the campaign with five goals in nine games before enduring a lengthy goal drought before the World Cup break.

Even when he hasn’t been scoring, Jesus has continued to have a profound impact on Mikel Arteta’s side and there’s no doubt that the Gunners won’t quite be the same in his absence.

Arteta will now seek out alternatives in a bid to mitigate Jesus’ injury. Eddie Nketiah is poised to take the majority of the former City striker’s minutes, but Gabriel Martinelli could also be used in a central role.

Should the diagnosis reveal that Jesus will miss the vast majority of the second half of the season, Arsenal may take a dip into the January transfer market in a bid to alleviate the pressure on Eddie. Recalling Folarin Balogun is also on the table.