Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus has been singled out for criticism in an intriguing piece by Premier League legend Alan Shearer.
Writing in The Athletic, Shearer analysed a number of big chances missed by players, and one of those was the recent mis-hit effort by Arsenal front-man Jesus in the 2-2 draw at home to Tottenham.
The Brazil international is undoubtedly a fine player, with his technique, skill, work rate and intelligence making him a superb all-rounder in attack, but it’s fair to say he’s not the most clinical finisher.
Some Arsenal fans would surely love to see a real 25-plus-goal-a-season striker in their ranks, but Jesus doesn’t look like he’s ever likely to be that kind of player, and Shearer certainly feels some poor xG stats would back that up.
Discussing Jesus and his miss against Spurs in particular in his Athletic column, the former Newcastle player-turned-pundit said: “Jesus does really well to anticipate the pass and nabs the ball from James Maddison’s toes.
“It leaves him in an ideal position in the middle of the goal, with space around him and the choice of aiming either side. He goes with the option of hitting his shot with the front of his foot, which is fine; it’s something I used to do a lot of the time.
“He also goes for power and there’s nothing wrong with that either because power shouldn’t take away from your accuracy. I always felt that if I picked my spot and got my shot away, then the harder I hit it, the harder it would be for the ’keeper to stop it. A load of my goals were struck firmly and weren’t more difficult to control.
“But this is another example of leaning back for a shot; Jesus’ body and technique are all wrong. Without wishing to pick on him, he has consistently been underperforming his xG over the past few years, which tells you he’s getting into good positions and isn’t finishing them. Exhibit A right here.”