From being late for school in Brazil to watch the UEFA Champions League, to being part of our squad to return to the competition at Emirates Stadium tonight, Gabriel Jesus loves this competition.
“It’s different because I remember the times I missed school to watch and my mum got crazy,” he said in Tuesday’s pre-PSV Eindhoven press conference. "99 percent of the kids I grew up with dreamed to play in the Champions League. Now I can say this, but at that time I couldn't tell my mum. I'm okay now but, kids, please, don't do that!
"My family and close friends are very happy for me now. They watch and get emotional, of course.
“To hear the music and see the best clubs from all the leagues, it’s a different competition.
“Yesterday, some of the players were putting the music on. Everyone is happy, not just the players, but the club and the fans, because it’s been a long time without playing in this competition. A club like Arsenal cannot stay without playing in it, so everyone is very happy.”
Asked about his experience in the Champions League, which Gabriel has played in for Manchester City, our forward suggested everyone in the team has enough experience at an elite level, even if they haven’t played in the UCL.
“Everyone here is already experienced, to know how to control emotions and these kinds of things,” he explained. “For some of them, it will be their first time playing in the Champions League, which is a different competition, but I still think if you can play in the Premier League, the toughest league in the world, you can play in the Champions League.
“All the competitions and trophies, we go to win and the Champions League is the same. If we think the opposite, we are wrong, because we are playing for Arsenal. We have to believe and then trust the teammates, the manager and the club and go for it.”
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