Chelsea should look to roll back the years this summer and beat Arsenal to another of the Premier League's most coveted players. Gabriel Jesus has been heavily linked with a move to both Stamford Bridge and the Emirates Stadium, with the 25-year-old reportedly keen to leave Manchester City.
football.london understand that the Gunners' technical director Edu has held talks with Jesus' representatives in recent months. However, with the absence of Champions League qualification, the Brazil international has been reluctant to pen a deal in north London.
As a result, the door has been left open for the Blues who are said to have joined the race following Romelu Lukaku's disappointing return to west London. Arsenal, who have a long-standing interest in Jesus, are now set to schedule a new round of talks in a bid to 'reiterate' their desire for the striker's services, according to The Telegraph.
READ MORE: Mikel Arteta set for transfer window bonus as Arsenal signings can benefit from World Cup change
Pep Guardiola's side are believed to value their forward at £50million and Mikel Arteta's side are 'confident' of completing a deal. But, BILD journalist Christian Falk has reported that Thomas Tuchel is excited by the prospect of working with Jesus and, with Champions League qualification under his belt, Chelsea have put themselves in a good position to sign him.
And, having already gone one-up over Arsenal with the signing of Fabregas in 2014 when the Spaniard reportedly snubbed a return to his former club after leaving Barcelona, the Blues could pull off a similar operation again. Like under Jose Mourinho eight years ago with the midfielder's arrival, Jesus would be a signing of intent.
Speaking to football.london, Tuchel explained the need for a rebuild at Chelsea this summer. The Blues boss said: "We are rebuilding, not improving the squad. We are rebuilding. This is always challenging, but we are up for the challenge.
"I don't know where we are from day one. What I can promise is that I will be here – if I can promise that – I will be here with full energy and positive energy no matter what. We will still work for Chelsea, and I refuse to think of negative scenarios. We will be competitive, on which level we will see."
The consortium led by Todd Boehly, who agreed a £4.25billion deal to buy the west London club last month, are expected to 'push for A-list signings' to mark a new era at Stamford Bridge, according to the MailOnline. And, with the new ownership group eager to bolster the Blues' armoury, The Telegraph report that after player sales are taken into account, Tuchel is set to have £200million at his disposal to strengthen his side - some of which could be set aside for Jesus' arrival.
