"It will be different" - Arsenal star makes bold prediction ahead of new season despite being 'nervous' in dramatic title collapse last time

Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus believes the Gunners can beat Manchester City to the Premier League title next season.

The North London outfit had an excellent 2022-23 campaign, dominating the No.1 spot in the league table for the majority of the season. However, Mikel Arteta's men fell short after suffering a string of losses in April.

As a result, Manchester City were able to defend their crown as Arsenal finished five points behind Guardiola's men in second place.

Jesus has now admitted that the nerves got to the Arsenal squad in the final stretch of the term when the title race heated up. He said ahead of the Gunners' pre-season friendly against Barcelona on Thursday, July 27 (per the club's official website):

"It's difficult to know (where we fell short) but I believe sometimes at the end of the season, we were a little bit nervous as a team. They were not nervous as normally they win so that made a difference. This season we have experience of this and it will be different."

He added:

"They (Man City) are together years and that made a difference. Winning for years made a difference also. The year I arrived (at Arsenal) I believed we could fight and win. Unfortunately we didn't win but I think we will win, for sure."

Jesus urged his side to keep up their momentum and go into the next season with the same energy:

"We created this by doing so well. To win the Premier League was our main target but at least we fought till the end with one of the biggest clubs in the world. We have to go again with the same energy, you know."

"People believe more in us because the work we put in on the pitch was top. Now everyone here wants to continue and increase the level again."

It remains to be seen whether the Gunners can end their 20-year wait for a Premier League title next term.

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"That created a little bit of doubt" - Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta echoes Gabriel Jesus' 'nervousness' claims

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta seems to agree with Gabriel Jesus' assessment of their title challenge last season.

The Spanish boss believes an aura of doubt emerged in the dressing room due to the pressure of a heated title race, especially against a dominant team like Manchester City.

Arteta said in the aforementioned press conference:

"Yes, I think when he talks about that nervousness or insecurity or uncertainty in certain moments, I think that's related to a lot of key moments that happened, especially in the three conservative draws that we had."

"That created a little bit of doubt in ourselves because then we have more urgency to win."

The Arsenal manager added:

"I think it gave City a big platform to build momentum from where they were coming from. One thing really affected the other and I think that had a really important effect on the outcome of the championship."

Jesus had an impressive debut season with the Gunners during the 2022-23 campaign, despite suffering injuries last term. The Brazilian forward racked up 11 goals and seven assists in 26 Premier League appearances after arriving from Manchester City.

The Brazil international is also a four-time Premier League winner with his former club.