5 standout players from Arsenal’s 5-3 victory over Barcelona

2. Gabriel Jesus

Except for the fact that the second-best player on the pitch in my opinion was Gabriel Jesus. After his injury, Jesus suffered a bit of a blip and didn’t look quite the same player. However, he looked like he was back to his pre-injury best in LA.

His ability to dribble past players anywhere on the pitch, including in the penalty area, is unmatched. He jigs and turns and zags and sometimes I can’t even keep up through the TV screen. He almost created a magical goal for Bukayo Saka with some wizardry in the box but the cross didn’t quite find its target.

A not-so-underrated but very important aspect of Jesus’ profile is how much of a battler he is. He’ll always give the team all of his effort and he is very smart about how he uses his body. For Trossard’s goal, Ramsdale launched the ball deep into the opposition half and Jesus tussled with the defender who can only clear it a few yards to the Belgian who then finishes. I don’t think Jesus is trying to win that header, he is just making the clearance as difficult as possible, and in this case, it resulted in a goal.

Jesus at his best is such a good performer and the kind of player that teammates, fans and managers alike love. Getting him back on form will be a massive boost for Arsenal and it looks like the attacking options are varied for Mikel Arteta, despite not signing a forward.

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