According to a recent report from Metro, Juventus have ramped up their interest for Manchester City’s forward Gabriel Jesus. The Italian giants had also recently sent scouts to watch him in action. It is believed that Pep Guardiola is leaving the decision regarding the striker’s future in the player’s hands.
Many expected the Brazilian ace to be an established starter in City’s lineup by now. However, Sergio Aguero is still going strong at 32 and Jesus is fighting for first-team places at the Etihad. Jesus has grabbed ten goals in the Premier League this season, but he has only managed to start 13 games in the English top flight.
The report adds that Guardiola is an admirer of Jesus, but he is going to leave the decision in his hand as he did in Leroy Sane’s case.
Is Guardiola making a mistake?
We believe that City should do everything in their means to keep hold of Jesus. The Citizens will anyway need a new striker soon as Aguero’s contract is expiring in 2021. There is also a shortage of top-class strikers in the transfer market who would be the right age and have a playing style which would suit City.
Jesus has already gained valuable experience of playing under Guardiola and in the Premier League. Any new replacement coming in will take time to adjust, and there is no guarantee that he would be better than Jesus. The Brazilian is still just 23, so one can say he is yet to hit his peak. Hence, with more experience and game time, he should improve further.
Jesus might have made just 13 starts in the Premier League this season, but he has played 38 games in all competitions so far. City are capable of competing on all the fronts, and that is one of the reasons why they have had supremacy even in domestic cup competitions. Hence, one cannot say that Jesus is really struggling for game time or is on the fringes of the squad.
Therefore Guardiola should look to convince Jesus that his time would come soon. The Brazilian is also a versatile striker who can play on the flanks as well. To go with that, he doesn’t mind working hard for his team as he showed in the game against Real Madrid in the Champions League recently. Jesus has his contract at the club until 2023 and replacing two strikers (assuming Aguero will move on soon given his age) will be an uphill task for any team. Hence, Guardiola must keep hold of Jesus.
