Oleksandr Zinchenko has lauded the "incredible" application that Gabriel Jesus shows in training and believes that the Arsenal star has driven standards at the club this season.
Neither Zinchenko or Jesus are strangers to winning the Premier League title after enjoying success at Manchester City, but both are hoping to win the domestic crown with the Gunners this season after swapping the Etihad for the Emirates back in the summer.
Arsenal have an eight point cushion over Manchester City at the summit of the standings ahead of the run-in and are bidding to end a 19-year title drought under the guidance of Mikel Arteta.
The Spaniard's astute transfer business last summer, namely the captures of Jesus and Zinchenko, has been integral to the club's unlikely title tilt this term.
Jesus quipped earlier this week that Zinchenko "wants to kill" him after he ribbed the full-back over a lack of involvement in some of City's title-winning campaigns from years gone by. But Zinchenko showed there were no hard feelings with his Gunners teammate by lavishing the Brazilian striker with praise.
“When we do simple exercises, normally the guys in the middle, when trying to win the ball back [they put in] 50 per cent of their focus,” Zinchenko told Sky Sports ahead of Sunday's crunch clash at Liverpool.
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“But [Jesus], he’s like an animal. Sometimes there are a lot of frustrating moments in football - when you don’t play much when you didn’t play well in the last game - but him, his reaction in all these moments is incredible. Chapeau.
“At City, I was watching him thinking ‘Wow, that’s the way you need to react on these, these and these moments’. And he was always the best on the pitch in training sessions. Always.
“Amazing talent. I know that he worked so hard to be in the position he is in right now, and I’m so happy to know him personally. It’s a pleasure to have these kinds of teammates in your team.”
After spending months on the sidelines following knee surgery, Jesus is back in the goalscoring groove after bagging a brace in last weekend's 4-1 win over Leeds.
And Arteta was "delighted" to see the Gunners' No.9 put his injury woe behind him in style ahead of the crucial run-in. Speaking about Jesus' goals, Arteta said: “Delighted for him. They all were. We were all clapping for him. He's been working so hard for the last four or five months with a lot of support from the team and the staff. Today he deserved the chance to start.
“He grabbed the opportunity with a lot of conviction and with two goals.”
