Mikel Arteta has responded to Gabriel Jesus' account of his final weeks at Arsenal, insisting he held an individual conversation with the striker before his move to Barcelona.
Mikel Arteta says he was "very surprised" by Gabriel Jesus' comments about how his Arsenal departure was handled and insists the pair spoke individually before the Brazilian left the club to join Barcelona this summer
Jesus made the move to Spain at the end of the summer transfer window after spending four years in North London.
Speaking since his departure, the striker claimed nobody explained his situation to him, and he was eventually separated from the first-team group to train alone.
Arteta was asked about the comments made by the former Arsenal striker, as part of his pre-match press conference ahead of the Gunners’ trip to Sunderland this weekend.
"Very surprised, to be fair, especially because with Gabby, I had an individual talk in the dressing room," Arteta said.
"I don't know what the words were said. It's fine. And the words that we use for each other, it was all about gratitude."
Jesus made four appearances through Arsenal’s pre-season, with many of Arsenal’s starters returning late from World Cup duties. Despite this, it wasn’t enough to convince Arsenal he still could fight for a spot within their squad. A surprise move to Barcelona was completed on transfer deadline day.
The striker has since said he knew opportunities could be limited in the new season, but maintained that nobody had specifically spoken to him before he was removed from group training.
His comments came after Arsenal's handling of another Brazilian forward had already been questioned publicly through the summer.
Arsenal legend Ian Wright said after the opening Premier League victory over Coventry City that he felt uncomfortable with the way Gabriel Martinelli's situation was being managed. Martinelli had been left out of Arsenal's early matchday squads amid uncertainty over his future.
Arteta also addressed this on Friday.
The Arsenal manager acknowledged that players can react badly when told something they don't want to hear, and accepted that responsibility can ultimately fall on him when difficult decisions have to be made.
"Sometimes I understand that when you have to deliver bad news, or news that people don't expect, those things are reacted," he said.
"Somebody has to be their backup. If I have to be, I have to be."
Arteta did not dispute that difficult conversations had taken place over the summer, with Arsenal making significant changes across their front line.
Instead, he pointed to the relationships he has maintained with former players after their departures as a better measure of how those situations were eventually handled.
"What is important is normally what happens three months later, six months later, when Trossard comes in, is in the dressing room with all of us, the atmosphere and the relation you have," Arteta said.
"Thanks God so far with all the players that they left at some point the relationship has been really good. I hope that that's the same case."
Jesus was an important figure in Arteta's rebuild in the early stages, after joining Arsenal from Manchester City in 2022 alongside former teammate Oleksandr Zinchenko. But during his time in North London, injuries became increasingly disruptive, limiting his availability and his chances to start for the Gunners once he returned to full fitness.
His exit formed part of a wider reshaping of Arsenal's attacking group this summer. Martinelli and Trossard also made their exits after a Premier League-winning campaign.
Arteta's version of the striker's final weeks does not completely align with the account Jesus has subsequently given. What he did make clear is that, from his side, the Brazilian did not leave without a conversation.
