Arsenal bid £42m for Gabriel Jesus as Man City set asking price with seven suitors circling

Arsenal have lodged an opening bif of £42m for Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus, according to reports.

W yThe Brazilian has been linked with Arsenal for some time with those rumours ramping up in recent weeks.

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The announcement that Erling Haaland will be at the Etihad next season has further led to speculation that Jesus will be surplus to requirements.

Mikel Arteta has made no secret of his desire to sign a striker in the summer and is a big admirer of Jesus – who has scored 13 goals in all competitions this season – after the pair worked together before the Spanish boss swapped City for Arsenal.

Goal claim the Gunners have made an opening bid of £42m with director Edu in charge of negotiations, but it’s claimed City are holding out for a fee closer to the £50m mark.

Jesus’ agent Marcelo Pettinati confessed on Wednesday that the English side are just one of seven teams interested in the Brazilian.

He said: “We had talks with Arsenal about Gabriel Jesus, we like the project – it’s a possibility we’re discussing. There are six more clubs interested in Gabriel – he’s focused on final games with Man City, we’ll see”.

Arteta has outlined the attributes he wants from a new striker, with “goal threat” the number one priority.

He told Sky Sports : “He puts the ball in the net – that’s priority number one. Goal threat. Any successful team needs enough goal threat in the squad. Without it, you have nothing. You can play good football, but you need enough goal threat in the team. The other thing is that he has to complement the other people we have, personally and on the pitch. We need the right profile.”

Jesus is said to want to