Gabriel Jesus insisted he would decide his future along with Arsenal and hinted at the decision in January amid exit rumours.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta recently insisted that Gabriel Jesus remains a key part of his plans as the forward nears a return to action after a serious knee injury sustained earlier in the year. The Brazilian sustained an ACL rupture in the FA Cup loss to Manchester United, which has kept him out of action since.

Jesus recently returned to full training, and it may take a while for the Brazilian to take his place on the pitch. However, following the recent arrival of Viktor Gyokeres and the presence of Kai Havertz, Jesus is no longer seen as a guaranteed starter to lead Arsenal’s line moving forward.

Yet, Arteta feels, there’s a lot that Jesus could offer the team, as it remains to be seen how the Spanish manager uses him moving forward. In the time between the summer window and his return to training, a lot of rumours have gathered pace, with everything pointing at a potential exit for the forward.

Palmeiras and Flamengo are linked with a move for the Arsenal star, with many stories pointing at Jesus possibly preferring to re-join his former side should he leave north London. However, Jesus’ comments on Somos Fanaticos state he has not decided on his future and said he would decide together with the club, possibly in January.

Jesus said, “When I feel it’s time to return to Palmeiras, I’ll decide that with Arsenal, but we’re talking about a player who’s been out for nine months and is now fighting to get back into the team, and there are journalists who are talking without any basis whatsoever.”

“Coming back from such a complex surgery, it doesn’t make sense for me to leave Arsenal now.”

There are Premier League teams who are interested in Jesus, although there are doubts about whether the Brazilian forward will take a step down from Arsenal in that regard. However, a move back to Brazil could be on the cards if things do not work out in north London from the time he makes his return to action.

Jesus, for his part, remains a formidable forward player and could potentially offer an x-factor to Arsenal’s cause of winning major honours. He was a transformational signing in many regards following his move from Manchester City back in 2022, but injury issues have dominated his time in north London.

Despite rumours of Arsenal being ready to sell him, for now, he remains contracted until 2027, and there’s every chance Arteta keeps him on board at least until next summer. Given his fitness issues, the chances of him leaving in January are far less than next summer, meaning he could continue in north London for the remainder of the season.