Arsenal plot fresh talks with £50m-rated Gabriel Jesus amid rival interest in forward

Arsenal have scheduled a new round of talks with Gabriel Jesus as they attempt to position themselves at the front of the queue for the Manchester City forward.

Jesus is Arsenal’s top summer target to replace Alexandre Lacazette, who is rejoining Lyon. But Mikel Arteta's side face competition with Tottenham Hotspur keeping an eye on the Brazilian and Real Madrid also credited with an interest.

Arsenal, though, believe they have currently demonstrated the strongest interest in Jesus and are preparing to reiterate their determination to land him during a latest round of talks.

Jesus has made Arsenal sweat on their interest in him so far, which is a concern for head coach Arteta and technical director Edu, who are both desperate to land the City star.

Arteta knows Jesus well from his time as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at City, while Edu is a big admirer of the player and is thought to be key to discussions.

City are believed to value Jesus at around £50 million, with Arsenal confident they can strike a deal with the Premier League champions and match the 25-year-old’s wage demands.

Arsenal are willing to guarantee Jesus first-team football, but their failure to qualify for the Champions League could prove to be a disadvantage in their pursuit of the player.

Having initially targeted two new forward targets this summer, Eddie Nketiah’s expected decision to sign a new contract means Jesus has emerged as Arsenal’s number one transfer target.

Other than trying to sign Jesus, Arsenal are hopeful of concluding a deal for Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans, who has one year remaining on his contract, this summer.

Leicester will listen to offers for the midfielder and Tielemans, who had wanted to join a Champions League club,