Gabriel Jesus Dazzles as Arsenal Destroy Lens 6-0 with Six Different Scorers
Gabriel Jesus has had a rough return from injury, especially in the Premier League, as the former Manchester City striker has struggled for goals for the Gunners. However, he is enjoying his time in the Champions League, as he has now scored four goals in his four starts in the coveted European competition. The Gunners ran riot against their French opposition, as Gabriel Jesus, Havertz, Saka, Martinelli and Ødegaard all scored in the first half to become the first team in Champions League history to have five different scorers in the first half of a match. Jorginho added their six in the second half with a trademark penalty as the Gunners proved their potential champion’s credentials.
Arsenal Qualify for the Knockout Stage as Top Dog in Group B
After their tame 1-0 win against Brentford after the international break, many expected a better showing from Gabriel Jesus and the Gunners, and they did. Kai Havertz started the party for Arsenal as the German followed up the nod from Gabriel Jesus and poked the ball from close range for his second consecutive goal for his new club. Eight minutes later, Gabriel Jesus produced his latest masterpiece in the competition, as he demonstrated great composure and sat down a hapless Lens defender before dispatching his shot into the bottom corner.
Saka scored two minutes later as he bundled the ball into the empty net after Brice Samba could only parry Martinelli’s shot into his path. Martinelli did get on the scoresheet just four minutes later as he twisted and turned past Frankowski before arrowing his shot into the far corner. With the Gunners 4-0 up, captain Ødegaard placed the icing on the cake as he thumped home his volley to make it 5-0 against an opposition they had not won in three previous meetings.
The second half was damage limitation for Lens as they sat back and allowed Arsenal to dominate proceedings. Gabriel Jesus came close to scoring his second, but it was Jorginho who got Arsenal’s sixth as he coveted the penalty with his trademark run up as the game ended 6-0. The win means Arsenal secured the top spot in group B as PSV’s 3-2 comeback win was not enough to edge the Gunners off the leaderboard and served up a mouth-watering final match at the Netherlands. Furthermore, this win means Arsenal have qualified for the knockout stages in their last 20 European campaigns, a remarkable feat for a club hoping to secure their first European trophy.
Gabriel Jesus Becomes First English Team Player to Score in Each of His First Four Champions League Appearances
With six different scorers and a team-wide performance, it was hard to pinpoint who stood out. However, Gabriel Jesus’s dazzling performance on the pitch earned him the MOTM award and a place in the history books as he became the first player to score in each of his first four Champions League appearances for an English team.
In the post-match interview, Gabriel Jesus hailed his teammate’s superb performance and the crowd’s support. When you start the game like we did, we score a lot of goals, then we’re winning. Obviously, we want to continue, but sometimes it’s just impossible because you get tired, and the opponent tries to play with the ball. We stay less with the ball, so it’s always difficult, but we didn’t concede a goal. We keep the clean sheet, that’s good, and then we score in the last minutes.”
As for how deep Arsenal can go in the competition and his personal ambition, he replied: “Champions League, I see many times,” he said. “I watched a lot at home. Sometimes I miss school to watch because I love football. The Champions League is special, like the Premier League, but I already won the Premier League at Man City. I want to win here at Arsenal obviously, but I want to win the Champions League as well. Not just scoring, but winning.”
Mikel Arteta Claims That This Performance Is Beyond His Dream
As an enigmatic manager, it is hard to make Mikel Arteta speechless. However, his team’s performance today was something that he did not even dream of. ” I didn’t even dream like this. We had the chance to qualify today and be top of the group, and I think we’ve done it in a really convincing way. The team from the beginning showed a lot of aggression and determination to go for the game. Everything happened in the right way in the first 30 minutes.”
Mikel Arteta also praised Gabriel Jesus, the other five scorers and the defenders for their showing and dedication to play until the final whistle. “When the team has that body language, living every action and every game the way we do, good things are going to come. The team wants to win and doesn’t want to concede anything, and that’s the mentality that we need to become better. Those players need to have those experiences and believe that we can do it against those opponents.”
When asked about Arsenal’s chances in the competition, the Spaniard played it down and stated: “Now let’s wait. We have to park it. We will know in February who we’re facing in the next round, and let’s see how we are at that moment.” While Mikel remains humble, what are your feelings, Arsenal fans? How far can your team advance after you replay the match repeatedly? If you have unfortunately missed it, here’s a high-definition highlight reel from AsiaSport to satisfy your hunger.
