Jesus down but not out

The last time Monaco came to the Emirates an out of form striker endured a frustrating night. Nine years later it seems that very little has changed.

The Gabriel Jesus that signed for Arsenal two and a half years ago would have walked away with two goals against Monaco. The one on display on Wednesday night never looked like grabbing what would have been just his third goal of the calendar year.

And yet, Jesus can, in many ways, walk away from tonight’s game with his head held high. He walked off to a standing ovation from the Arsenal crowd when he was subbed and deserved it. His assist for Bukayo Saka’s opener was sublime, and some of his hold up play was outstanding.

“He was alive and created the first goal by creating a great movement,” Mikel Arteta said of his display. “That’s him. We have him, we have him back and I’m sure he’ll contribute to the team.”

There have been suggestions that the Brazilian could leave the club in January although Arteta dismissed these as nonsense in the pre-match. Regardless of his goal threat, it seems he still has a role to play.

This is where the Olivier Giroud comparison feels even more adept. The Frenchman was signed to be the main striker at Arsenal but never quite had the clinical edge. He was a figure of ridicule for a while, but by the team he left the club many were sad to see him go.

That was because he was able to reinvent himself as a trustworthy impact player. The super-sub extraordinaire who him teammates adored playing with. There’s little doubt that Alexis Sanchez was made a better player by the unselfish work Giroud did for him.

It seems that this is the role that awaits Jesus now at Arsenal. He has lost his status as first choice striker. Kai Havertz’s goal and assist off the bench were timely reminders of that.

But trophy-winning teams need players like Giroud and Jesus. The Brazilian may not exactly want the role, but he seems to have assumed the position he had at Manchester City. It was a key one there and will be a key one for Arsenal this season.

Lewis-Skelly impresses on first Champions League start

We’ve seen drips and drabs of Myles Lewis-Skelly this season. The 18-year-old has been thrown on in the biggest games against Manchester City and Liverpool, started in the Carabao Cup, and even been used ahead of Oleksandr Zinchenko off the bench on occasion in Europe.

A Champions League start though is a different matter altogether. Particularly when you factor in that he has been missing for a couple of weeks with a foot injury.

Lewis-Skelly though stepped up superbly. Arteta highlighted the 18-year-old’s personality in the pre-match and it was on full display as he showed bravery to dribble away from sticky situations and keep possession where others would have been forgiven for booting long. His highlight of the game was undoubtedly his role in the first goal where his through ball to Jesus broke open what had been a tightly packed Monaco defence. The fact that Gabriel Martinelli and William Saliba went over to him to celebrate after Bukayo Saka tucked home was testament to the respect he has from his teammates. His manager certainly agrees.

“It’s just a joy to watch him and a privilege to give a chance to somebody to start to change his career,” Arteta said. “He certainly took the chance. It’s great that we can trust him and that he can play in this environment with this level. I was really happy with his performance.”

There could now be a shot at a decent run in the side for Lewis-Skelly with Zinchenko, Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Gabriel all nursing injuries. He certainly looks ready to seize the opportunity.

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