It is no secret that Arsenal want to sign a new striker this summer.
The Gunners haven’t had a prolific goalscorer since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was at the club. Gabriel Jesus is the only striker Mikel Arteta has signed in his career so far.
That is expected to change this summer, and a number of big names have been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium.
However, if a report from Brazil is to be believed, Arsenal are pushing to sign a striker who not many people here in England would’ve really heard about.
Arsenal have submitted an offer to sign Igor Jesus
Igor Jesus has been linked with Arsenal for quite some time.
Rumours first emerged about the Gunners’ interest when Edu Gaspar was still at the club. No move materialised then, but those links kept coming.
During the January transfer window, reports claimed that Arsenal tabled a bid to sign Jesus on loan with an option to make that permanent.
Botafogo rejected that bid at the time, and the 24-year-old striker ended up staying in Brazil in that window.
Now, RTI Esporte claim that Arsenal have made a bid for Jesus in recent days and are keen to bring him to North London before the start of next season.
The striker has a release clause of €100 million (£84m) in his contract, but the report claims that Arsenal’s plan is to sign him for much less than that figure.
Jesus is said to be on the radar of Aston Villa and West Ham United as well, but Botafogo have no interest in letting their star striker leave, especially before the Club World Cup.
Igor Jesus once compared himself to Gabriel Martinelli
Igor Jesus has been making a lot of noise in Brazil and even earned himself a senior international call-up last year. He has played four times for the Selecao and has scored once.
The attacker rubbed shoulders with Arsenal duo Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhaes there.
While speaking to the media to describe his style of play, Jesus compared himself to the Arsenal number 11, as well as Real Madrid stars Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, who is a target for Mikel Arteta now.
He told the official FIFA website: “The national team has a very pacey attack when you look at players like Vinicius, Rodrygo and Martinelli. I think my game is quite similar to theirs.
“I like to try to attack the spaces, and I am mobile. I don’t just stay in the box. I am capable of holding onto balls played out by the keeper and holding off defenders, which I think helps to ease the pressure on the team in tough passages of play.”
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