Gabriel Jesus Set for First Start in Nearly a Year for Arsenal

Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Gabriel Jesus is ready to start for Arsenal in their EFL Cup quarter-final clash with Crystal Palace on Tuesday. Jesus, who has been out for 11 months with an anterior cruciate ligament injury, has made three substitute appearances since his return and is eager to get back to starting games.

"He's going to deserve a chance soon," Arteta said. "You can see now, not only in games, every day in training, how much he wants it". Jesus could take the place of Viktor Gyokeres, who has struggled to find the back of the net from open play in his last six appearances.

Arteta praised Jesus' ability to bring people together and generate uncertainty in the opponent, saying, "I think that's probably the biggest quality of Gabi, bringing people together, connecting with people and generating a lot of uncertainty in the opponent".

This is a big opportunity for Jesus, who scored a hat-trick in Arsenal's last-eight win against Palace last season. The Gunners are looking to end their six-year trophy drought and are confident they can progress to the semi-finals.