"Honestly, Cringe FC you lot" - Ex-Chelsea star slams Arsenal for north London derby pre-match gesture

Former Chelsea star Jason Cundy has slammed Arsenal for their pre-match gesture before the north London derby on Wednesday (January 15). The Gunners hosted Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League at the Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta's side grabbed the opportunity to close the gap to league leaders Liverpool with a 2-1 victory over the Lilywhites.

Son Heung-min took the lead for Spurs at the quarter-hour mark before an own goal from Dominic Solanke and Leandro Trossard's excellent strike put Arsenal 2-1 up at the break.

The scoreline remained the same for the second period, securing all three points for the north Londoners, who are now four points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand.

Before the derby, the Arsenal players walked out onto the pitch wearing No. 9 jerseys with Gabriel Jesus' name. The team donned the Brazilian's shirt as a show of support after he tore his ACL during their FA Cup defeat to Manchester United last weekend. Each jersey had a message that read 'Stay Strong Gabby'.

Jason Cundy has offered his honest thoughts on the gesture as the former Chelsea star told talkSPORT:

"I want to get some thoughts on this from the Gooners as well. Before the game, every single Arsenal player came out with a shirt on. With Gabriel Jesus' name at the top, number 9. And at the back said, 'Stay strong Gabby.' What's that all about? Honestly, Cringe F.C you lot."

"Michail Antonio nearly died in a car crash... the West Ham players didn't come out with things like that on their backs? It felt a little bit cringy to me."

The Gunners will next face Aston Villa at home in the Premier League on Saturday (January 18).

Pundit urges Arsenal to sign former Chelsea star as Gabriel Jesus replacement

Ally McCoist has advised Arsenal to sign former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham after Gabriel Jesus' injury. The pundit believes the English forward would be effective in front of goal for the Gunners.

Abraham played in Chelsea's academy and eventually earned his first-team promotion under Frank Lampard in 2019. He scored 30 goals in 82 appearances for the Blues before joining Jose Mourinho's AS Roma two years later.

With Jesus likely out for the remainder of the season with a serious ACL injury, McCoist believes Abraham would be the perfect fit at Arsenal. He said:

"Seemingly it’s taken an injury to Gabriel Jesus to push them over the line in going to get a centre-forward. Which is something that should have happened a long time ago. Who do they get? The thing is now, the selling club know that they’re desperate."

"Absolutely desperate. £20m becomes £30m, £40m becomes £50m and they’ve only got themselves to blame for that situation. One that’s going under the radar a little bit… Tammy Abraham. They just need somebody that can effectively stand in the six-yard box and score goals. That’s what they need."

Abraham is currently on a season-long loan at AC Milan. He has scored six goals in 23 appearances across competitions for the Serie A outfit.