Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed that the north Londoners will soon benefit from a “very unpredictable” weapon that is set to add something new.
This weekend, Sunderland are next in line to try and break down Arsenal’s imperious defence, which hasn’t been breached since their dramatic 2-1 win away to Newcastle back in September.
Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Athletic Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 1-1 Man City
Port Vale 0-2 Arsenal
Newcastle 1-2 Arsenal
Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos
Arsenal 2-0 West Ham
Fulham 0-1 Arsenal
Arsenal 4-0 Atlético Madrid
Arsenal 1-0 Crystal Palace
Arsenal 2-0 Brighton
Burnley 0-2 Arsenal
Slavia Prague 0-3 Arsenal
The Black Cats, led by their arguable player of the season so far in ex-Arsenal star Granit Xhaka, are no easy customers and have made one of the best starts by a newly-promoted side in Premier League history.
However, the numbers suggest Regis Le Bris’ side might have their work cut out for them at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.
Arsenal haven’t just kept eight clean sheets in a row across all competitions, but they also boast the best defensive record in Europe’s top five leagues and have marked themselves out as England’s set piece specialists in that time.
No other Premier League side has scored more goals from dead ball situations than Arsenal so far this season (12), with Arteta’s side bringing the dark acts back into fashion.
While Arsenal have been criticised by some for their perceived ‘boring’ style of play, especially from ex-Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara, Arteta won’t be fussed in the slightest as his team sit pretty at the top of the table.
Arsenal’s water-tight backline and threat from set pieces are undoubtedly the two main reasons why they’re currently in pole position to win their first Premier League title in 22 years, but speaking ahead of their clash with Sunderland, Arteta revealed they’re about to have another weapon at their disposal.
Mikel Arteta says "very unpredictable" Gabriel Jesus will add something new to Arsenal
£265,000-per-week striker Gabriel Jesus hasn’t played since Arsenal’s FA Cup defeat to Man United back in January after rupturing his ACL, and reports once claimed that the Brazilian might not be back in action until next year.
However, Jesus has now returned to training, so his comeback is nigh, as Arteta explains how “thrilled” he is by the news.
The 28-year-old has been repeatedly linked with a January exit following the arrival of summer signing Viktor Gyokeres, who is expected to return from injury in time for the North London derby at the end of November.
That being said, it appears Arteta still has big plans for Jesus at Arsenal, with the forward capable of playing out wide as well as at centre-forward.
It will be very interesting to see how the former Man City star fits into Arteta’s tactical set-up, especially once their full complement of attackers in Gyokeres, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Noni Madueke return from injury too.