Ralph Hasenhuttl, who is in charge of Southampton, is sure that Gabriel Jesus is a “massive upgrade” for Arsenal as a striker. He has also given Mikel Arteta high marks for making “brave decisions.”
The Saints manager will play Arteta’s top-placed Gunners on Sunday at St. Mary’s. Hasenhuttl led his team to a 1-0 win in the same game last year. But the Austrian doesn’t think the visiting team will have the same kind of game this weekend.
Arsenal’s chances of getting into the Champions League took a big hit when Southampton beat them in April. It was the end of a bad stretch for the north London team. They had lost three games in a row. But Arteta answered by getting Jesus from Manchester City in a £45m deal over the summer.
Ralph Hasenhuttl heaped praise on Arsenal man Gabriel Jesus
After getting right to work, Jesus has been nothing but a revelation in the capital city. In his 10 Premier League games, the 25-year-old has scored five goals and set up four more. He also keeps the Gunners going with his quick feet and never-ending drive.
Arteta also went to the Etihad Stadium to buy Oleksandr Zinchenko, a new left-back, for £32 million. Hasenhuttl also likes the Ukraine international, who plays for Arsenal, along with their central players. Even though Zinchenko has only been on the field for two of their last seven games.
Ralph Hasenhuttl is sure that getting Gabriel Jesus was a “massive upgrade” for Arsenal.
The Times says that Jesus took over for Alexandre Lacazette as Arsenal’s striker after the club paid Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang £7m to leave in January. When Lacazette’s contract ended in June, Arteta let him go. Five years after he switched teams for £46.5m, he re-signed with Lyon.
Hasenhuttl, the coach of Southampton, is excited about Sunday’s game because of what Jesus has brought to Arsenal in a short amount of time. But the Austrian also says that Arteta has improved as a coach since he took over the Gunners from Unai Emery in December 2019.
Hasenhuttl said, “Jesus is a big step up, he has made a big difference. The left-back is new, and they are very strong in the middle. So, they are a very good team with a lot of quality in each member.
And now that Mikel is in his third year, I think he knows how to take care of the group. He has made some brave choices in the past. Now he is getting rewarded for it. It’s not a coincidence that they are more reliable and doing well.”
On Sunday, Arteta will be in charge of Arsenal’s 145th game in all competitions. That game will be at Southampton. The 40-year-old has won 86 of the 144 games he has led at the Emirates Stadium and tied 20. His Arsenal teams have also scored 256 goals and given up 153.
