Atleti completely shut the door on Alvarez, Inter and Lautaro shut the door on us too, Chelsea refused to negotiate over João Pedro, Kroupi Jr. suffered a serious injury the moment we became interested, Kane wanted to renew with Bayern, and every other striker either wasn't good enough or wasn't feasible for one reason or another.
It's almost as if fate didn't want us to sign a striker for our own good.
🚨 Messi retirement reminds me of his honest words about Cristiano Ronaldo 👀
🗣️Reporter: Who’s the best player in the world? Do not include yourself
🇦🇷Messi: “It’s hard to pick because they are so many. Let me think🤔. In my opinion Neymar, Mbappe, Hazard, Suarez, Kun(Aguero). I might have forgotten some. But I’m sure any of these players can be the best”
🗣️Reporter: You mentioned a lot of good players. But you’re forgetting someone. He wears the number 7. Does it come to mind?
🇦🇷Messi: “Cristiano? I excluded him with myself. We’re the same category (GOAT)”
Such an amazing human being ❤️ I will miss you forever 😭
Gabriel Jesus joining Barça confirms one thing for me: Flick never really wanted the classic tall, physical, pure goalscoring striker profile.
He wants a forward who can do much more outside the box, combine with the wingers and interchange positions across the attack. That profile is only available among a few elite players like Kane and Julián Álvarez, and neither of their clubs would realistically sell to Barça.
So Barça have gone for a player with a profile somewhat similar to Julián. Jesus would be willing to join, Arsenal would not stand in his way, and if he stays fit, I genuinely think he can be very useful in Flick’s system as a backup striker.
At €10M, you are barely buying an unknown La Liga striker in today’s market. For a player with Gabriel Jesus’ qualities, it is a great market opportunity.
The only huge concern is his injuries. That is honestly what scares me about this signing. Without that issue, I would see it as an excellent opportunity that also would not affect Barça’s chances of going back for Julián in January if the opportunity becomes available.
My opinion on the signing: great profile, great price, potentially very useful… but the injury record is the biggest risk.