“God surprised me” – Player thrilled with shock Arsenal exit

Gabriel Jesus has revealed he expected to either see out his Arsenal contract or return to Brazil before Barcelona suddenly came calling.

The 29-year-old left the Gunners late in the summer window, joining Barcelona permanently for €10m (£8.7m), with another €4m (£3.5m) potentially due in bonuses.

His exit itself wasn’t really surprising by that stage. Jesus had fallen out of Mikel Arteta’s plans and spent time away from the first-team group.

What did surprise the Brazilian was his destination. Jesus has now explained that a move of that size wasn’t something he thought would arrive at this point in his career. Neither did we.

“I thought the opportunity had passed”

“In my head, either I would stay at Arsenal until the end of my contract or I would return to Brazil,” Jesus said to Barcelona’s official website.

“I thought the opportunity to play for Barça had passed, but God surprised me again.”

“Imagine being away from the pitch for a week and then Barça turn up wanting to sign you. I didn’t want to hear about anything else. Coming here was quick and easy.”

It’s an interesting admission given everything happening around Jesus during his final weeks at Arsenal. Napoli were interested and held talks over a potential move, but UOL say those negotiations didn’t progress.

There were other possibilities being mentioned at the time too. And Jesus initially preferred another move within English football. Yet the player himself makes his expectations sound much simpler.

Without Barcelona, he thought he’d either spend the final year of his Arsenal contract at the Emirates or head back to Brazil. That also helps explain why everything moved so quickly once Deco finally made his move.

Back at number nine

His first few weeks in Spain have been quite positive. Jesus has scored twice in four appearances so far, all from the bench.

“It’s been a question of adapting during this first month,” he said. “We have amazing footballers. The coach too, who is a very good coach. We are on the right road.”

Barcelona also asked what he can bring to Hansi Flick’s side. Jesus pointed to his versatility, directness and winning mentality.

Well, that versatility became very useful during his Arsenal years. Competition for places meant he could be used centrally or out wide, depending on where Arteta needed him.

At Barcelona, though, Jesus is pretty clear about where he’d like to settle.

“I want to be the number nine right now,” he said. “I am at Barça, wearing the legendary number nine, and I want to make sure I do my job.”

There’s also been another adjustment for someone who had already spent almost a decade with Manchester City and Arsenal.

“We feel the support from the culers [fans] wherever we go,” Jesus said. “Whether at the Spotify Camp Nou or away from home, where there might be 100 people outside the hotel; I had never experienced that with another team.”

That’s quite a statement from someone who had already spent his career at two of England’s biggest clubs.

A little over a month ago, Jesus thought his immediate future involved Arsenal or Brazil. Fair to say things changed very quickly.