Premier League star says Arsenal have a player who’s more difficult to play against than Erling Haaland

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Arsenal’s need for a new striker has been talked about a lot this season.

Mikel Arteta was desperate for a centre-forward in January, but the board let him down despite links to several names over the course of the window.

Arsenal, however, should’ve acted a lot sooner. They have been in need of a striker for over two years now, but no action has been taken on that front.

One of the reasons for that, perhaps, is that Arteta believed the attackers at his diposal could do the job. Crystal Palace star Maxence Lacroix certainly thinks that Arsenal have a top-class forward.

Maxence Lacroix makes big claim about Arsenal star Gabriel Jesus

Gabriel Jesus has had a really tough time at Arsenal.

The Brazilian started his life in North London in immense style. He was one of the best players in the world in his first few months at the Emirates.

However, Jesus has been nothing like that since, and injuries have made things incredibly hard for him over the last two years.

Despite all the criticism he gets from fans and pundits, Jesus is rated very highly by defenders in the Premier League.

Crystal Palace centre-half Maxence Lacroix, who has played against elite strikers like Erling Haaland, Alexander Isak and Robert Lewandowski in the past, has claimed that Jesus is his most difficult opponent ever.

He told talkSPORT: “The most difficult player I’ve played against is Gabriel Jesus, he scored a lot against us.

“I like to play against Haaland because he’s strong, we know it’s going to be a fight. I don’t like when players run a lot.”

What Virgil van Dijk has said about Gabriel Jesus

Jesus’ injury issues have hurt his form over the last two years, and that has led to immense criticism.

Many people have completely ignored his qualities up front and only judge him by the numbers he has produced in an Arsenal shirt.

However, several defenders in the game don’t want to face someone like Jesus.

Even Virgil van Dijk, who in many people’s eyes is the best defender in the world over the last five years, has admitted that it is difficult to play against the Gunners’ number nine.

“I don’t forget Sergio Aguero, who was very strong, but also Erling Haaland and Gabriel Jesus. Every one (of these strikers) makes you have very difficult matches,” Van Dijk told France Football in January 2024.