Richard Keys blasts Gabriel Jesus as extent of Arsenal injury blow emerges

03 August 2023 , 12:29

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Richard Keys blasts Gabriel Jesus as extent of Arsenal injury blow emerges

Richard Keys has bizarrely taken a dig at Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus, who he claims spent "all summer" partying which delayed knee surgery.

Jesus, 26, will now miss the start of Arsenal's Premier League campaign as he aims to fully recover from an injury which ruled him out for three months last season and forced him to miss the World Cup. Gunners boss Mikel Arteta confirmed the setback on Wednesday by revealing: "Unfortunately, he had a little procedure this morning."

"He had some discomfort in his knee that has been causing some issues and they had to go in and resolve it. It is not something major but he looks to be out for a few weeks, I think."

Reacting to the news on social media, former Sky Sports presenter Keys - now of Qatari network beIN Sports - wrote: "Amazing. How has Jesus been allowed to party all summer & only now go for knee surgery which will rule him out of the first few weeks of the season? And it was an existing injury that they knew about at Arsenal."

It's certainly not the first time that Keys has voiced his negative thoughts on Arsenal, with some fans even going as far as to theorise that he has a vendetta against the Gunners. Whether it be criticising their players for 'over-celebrating' wins or raging about Arteta's unsavoury touchline antics, which often land the Spaniard in hot water, Keys rarely misses an opportunity to bash Arsenal.

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But the disgraced ex-Sky anchor doesn't appear to have heard Arteta's comments regarding Jesus, which suggests that the Brazilian only felt "irritation" in his knee until his 'partying' had come to an end. "It is a big blow because we had him back to his best, especially the way he played against Barcelona, and he was in good condition and we lost him," the Gunners manager explained.

"But he has been feeling some discomfort in the last few weeks and we had to look at it, we had to make a decision and the best one is to protect the player and get him back as quick as possible so we decided to do it. It is something related to the previous injury that he had and the surgery. He had some irritation in the knee and we had to get it resolved."

Arteta was speaking after Arsenal had beaten Monaco on penalties in a pre-season friendly at the Emirates. Eddie Nketiah was chosen to lead the line in Jesus' absence, having capably done so during the course of last season.

Nketiah bagged a late equaliser to force a penalty shootout and also captained the side. The 24-year-old will be keen to do the same again when Arsenal face Manchester City in the Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday.

Nathan Ridley