What will Gabriel Jesus bring?

Gabriel Jesus officially becomes a Manchester City player on January 1, but what will the £27m Brazilian bring to the Premier League?

Gabriel Jesus may not be a household name in England, but he arrives at Manchester City with glowing references from Brazil. Pele has described the 19-year-old as a better player than Neymar, and there was high praise from Romario after he played with Jesus in a charity game last month.

“For what he has done in a Palmeiras shirt and in a Brazil shirt, I can say that he is going to be our next great No 9,” he said. “He’s a boy, he’s only starting out, but he’s already getting there and he’s a hard-working kid. For the next World Cup, if all goes well, we will be very happy with our attack.”

Jesus followed in Pele and Romario’s footsteps when he won the Brasileirao’s Golden Ball award for his efforts in firing Palmeiras to the 2016 title. The teenager scored 12 goals and added five assists over the course of 27 appearances, breaking into the national team in the process.

His performances on the international stage have been outstanding. Brazil were in dire straits before their coach Tite turned to Jesus in September. The summer’s Copa America had ended in embarrassment, and their World Cup qualifying campaign seemed to be heading the same way.

But since the teenager was brought into the team after helping Brazil’s U23s to gold at the Olympic Games, they have won six consecutive games and climbed to the top of the South American qualifying group.

Jesus has been a revelation in high-pressure circumstances, scoring five goals in his first six starts and easing the burden on Neymar. In the space of a …

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