Kelechi Iheanacho has not yet greeted new Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus, but he’s already
witnessed his goalscoring instincts first hand.
Jesus arrived in Manchester on Tuesday to begin his City career having signed for the club in the
summer, remaining in Brazil to finish the league season with Palmeiras, according to Goal.
The 19yearold contributed 12 goals as his boyhood club won the title for the first time in over 20
years, while he has scored five goals in six games for his country and two at last summer’s Olympic
Under23 tournament.
But his first goal while representing Brazil came in the 2015 Under20 World Cup in New Zealand. There
were just four minutes on the clock when Jesus found space in the box to prod home, backing up Pep Guardiola’s
claim that he, like Iheanacho and Sergio Aguero, can ‘sense’ goals.
Iheanacho was on the opposite team that day as Nigeria lost 42 to the eventual finalists, and he saw
enough to get him excited about his new teammate’s potential.
“I haven’t met him but I think I played with him in the Under20 World Cup, against Brazil, it was our
first game,” the Nigerian said after City drew with Celtic in December. “He’s a great kid, he’s a great
striker, he has great qualities, he was a great player.
“What we need is to help our club. We need everybody, both the people coming in and the people here, to carry the team along. It’s a collective effort, it’s not a oneman show, we need everybody around. He is my teammate now so we see him as one.”
Senior figures at City have indicated that Jesus will be the only new arrival at the club this January,
although Goal understands a number of options, including fullbacks and a central midfielder, are being considered.
Guardiola himself has said he would like to sign at least a fullback, and Iheanacho admits the Catalan
needs to sign more players who can carry out his demands, like Jesus.
“I’m going to be happy to see him playing with us,” the Nigerian added. “As I said before, it’s a
collective effort and the manager needs to bring his players to help us achieve our dreams this season.” Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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