Gabriel Jesus set to hand Arsenal huge boost ahead of Sporting Lisbon clash

Gabriel Jesus is expected to travel with the Arsenal squad to Portugal for their Europa League clash against Sporting Lisbon.

The high flying Gunners face the Portuguese giants for the first leg of their knock-out tie on Thursday, as they look to translate their domestic form on to the European stage.

Mikel Arteta's men are off the back of a dramatic 3-2 win against Bournemouth on Saturday, as they took one step closer to their first Premier league title in almost 20 years.

Jesus celebrated the victory from the touchline at the Emirates and took part in a cool-down session at the end of the match.

Arteta has turned to Eddie Nketiah in the Brazilian's absence. However, the goals have dried up for the 23-year-old, who has recently picked up an ankle injury which saw him miss out on the Bournemouth clash.

Jesus return date revealed

Jesus has not featured for the Gunners since November 12 after suffering a knee injury at the World Cup which required surgery.

However, the 25-year-old's rehabilitation appears to have gone even better than expected.

So much so, that Jesus is likely to travel with the squad to Lisbon on Wednesday, according to The Sun.

The report states that Arteta will not take any risks with the striker, but is using the opportunity to reintegrate the former Manchester City star into team training sessions.

However, it is unlikely that Jesus will be in the squad to face Fulham on Sunday, with a full return not expected until after the international break.

Arsenal's home encounter with Leeds on April 1 has been pinpointed as his first opportunity to return to the field.

Speaking ahead of the Bournemouth game, Arteta praised Jesus' mentality to recover as soon as possible.

The Gunners boss said: "I think it’s been pretty straightforward [his rehabilitation]. At the beginning, we were really concerned with the possible extent of the injury because we were talking about a few options there.

"Thankfully it wasn’t that bad, but it was a long-term injury, it required surgery and it’s not [pleasant], especially the first few weeks.

"But knowing Gaby, he’s been through that before. His mentality is incredible and the team has done a really good job with him to put him in the position he’s in today."

Topics: Arsenal, Gabriel Jesus, Mikel Arteta, Sporting Lisbon, Football, Europa League

Joe Adams

Joe is a Journalist for SPORTbible with a primary focus on football. He has previously covered a number of other sports including boxing, rugby and F1. Wishes he was born left-footed.

@joeadamsjourno