SKY SPORTS
Gabriel Jesus scored a superb solo goal as Arsenal stepped up their preparations for the new campaign with an impressive 4-1 win over Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.
Jesus, reinvigorated following an injury-hit campaign last term, pounced on a poor Leverkusen throw deep in Arsenal territory in the first half before carrying the ball forward and dispatching a low finish from outside the box to delight the Emirates Stadium crowd.
The rampant hosts were already two-goals up at that point, with Oleksandr Zinchenko and Leandro Trossard having finished smartly from Kai Havertz passes in the space of a minute early on.
Havertz moved up front after Jesus was substituted at half-time and the German scored Arsenal’s fourth goal when Bukayo Saka’s cut-back bounced into his path off Leverkusen’s Granit Xhaka, who received a warm reception on his return to north London.
Leverkusen scored a consolation goal through substitute Adam Hlozek but it did not dampen the spirits of the home fans, with Declan Rice given his first outing of pre-season as a second-half substitute as well as fellow Euro 2024 finalist Saka.
Arsenal fans were denied a chance to see new signing Riccardo Calafiori, who was not in the squad, but Mikel Arteta used the occasion to give more minutes to some of the youngsters who featured during the club’s US tour, with Miles Lewis-Skelly, Ethan Nwaneri, Ayden Heaven and Josh Nichols appearing as substitutes.
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