Gabriel Magalhaes, a defender for Arsenal, claims he encouraged Gabriel Jesus, a teammate from Brazil, to sign with the club this summer, joking that he may have had “a little bit of an influence.”
Jesus, a former Manchester City forward, joined the Gunners in a £45 million deal last month and has already had a significant impact under Mikel Arteta.
And Gabriel has admitted that as Arsenal’s interest in the forward grew this summer, he bugged his namesake while he was on international duty.
Gabriel [Jesus] is a really good guy,” the Gunners defender told Sky Sports. “Of course, it helps that we have the Brazilian link.
“When we were on international duty, we discussed his future and I was telling him, ‘Come to Arsenal! Come to Arsenal!’
“Maybe I had a bit of an influence there.
“He is someone who is very focused and really enjoys working hard. He is here to improve the team and he is already doing that. He has come here with big expectations. He wants to achieve big things with Arsenal. I think he is really going to help us.”