Kevin De Bruyne has stated the case for Gabriel Jesus to stay at Manchester City, with the 25-year-old striker reportedly set to leave the Etihad Stadium this summer. The Brazil international is said to be open to an exit and has a Premier League switch in his sights.
football.london understand that Arsenal technical director Edu has held talks with Jesus' representatives in recent months. However, with the absence of Champions League qualification, the Brazilian has been reluctant to pen a deal at the Emirates Stadium.
As a result, the door has been left open for Chelsea to make a move, who are said to have joined the race following Romelu Lukaku's disappointing return to Stamford Bridge. The Gunners, 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 his services, according to The Telegraph.
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Pep Guardiola's side are believed to value their forward at £50million and Arsenal 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 as leverage, Chelsea have put themselves in a good position.
De Bruyne has spoken on Jesus' future at City and, in doing so, the former Blues midfielder has told Todd Boehly exactly why he should fork out the funds to complete a deal. Speaking to the press on Tuesday afternoon, the Belgian heaped praise on his teammate, who is linked with a summer exit.
Expressing his desire for Jesus to stay, De Bruyne detailed why he wants to continue playing alongside the forward in the years to come. The 30-year-old said: "Since he came here, I've had a good relationship with him, he plays with so much energy. I've never any doubts on his quality.
"He's still so young, I hope he can play many times with me because he makes us better."
The consortium led by 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 - of which could be set aside for Jesus' arrival.
