Arsenal submit £42m offer for Man City star Gabriel Jesus

Arsenal have submitted a £42.8m [€50m] offer for Gabriel Jesus but it falls short of Manchester City’s £51.3m [€60m] valuation of the striker, according to Goal Brazil.

Mikel Arteta is on the market for a new forward after allowing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to join Barcelona in January. Alexandre Lacazette is also set to re-join Lyon on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the month.

Eddie Nketiah is reportedly ready to sign a new long-term deal at the Emirates Stadium but Arsenal still need to bring in at least one top class striker this summer ahead of their return to the Europa League next season.

Jesus has been touted as a prime target by the media in recent weeks and Goal Brazil claim that Arsenal have submitted an opening offer for the South American worth £42.8m [€50m].

Arteta worked closely with Jesus during his time at Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s assistant and it appears the Spanish coach wants to be reunited in north London this summer.

Goal Brazil says Jesus’s agents held talks in London last week where they discussed a move away from the Etihad Stadium with the forward making it clear he wants to leave the Premier League champions.

The 25-year-old has just 12 months left to run on his contract and has decided to find a new club as he knows he’ll fall down the pecking order at City following the arrival of Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.

Arteta is seemingly hoping to lure Jesus with the promise of regular first team football, however, there is still a lot of work to do as Goal Brazil says Arsenal’s offer falls short of Man City’s £51.3m [€60m] asking price.

Not only that, but the report claims that Jesus remains unconvinced by a move to the Gunners after they failed to qualify for the Champions League next season and he has plenty of other potential options.

Several top European clubs have been linked with a move for Jesus and Goal Brazil claims that Real Madrid are the latest to express their interest in the Brazilian international. Carlo Ancelotti has reportedly spoken to the player and made it clear he wants to take him to the Bernabeu after Madrid missed out on Kylian Mbappe.

We’ll have to wait and see how things progress over the coming weeks but it looks as though Arsenal are facing a battle to land one of their key summer transfer targets.