The Brazilian striker was a class act as Mikel Arteta’s men got the win in Spain, even though their captain was again not at his best

Gabriel Jesus put in a fantastic performance to inspire Arsenal to a 2-1 win against Sevilla in the Champions League on Tuesday. A sublime piece of skill and an excellent pass sent Gabriel Martinelli through to open the score and give the Gunners the lead right at the end of the first half, and Jesus then smashed in his team’s second early in the second period, cutting inside from the left and curling it into the net.

Sevilla pulled a goal back with a Nemanja Gudelj header from a corner – the relatively diminutive Jesus was, inexplicably, the man tasked with marking the tall Serb – and the Spanish side looked up for the fight. With William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Takehiro Tomiyasu looking strong at the back, however, the north London side were able to hold on for the win.

Coach Mikel Arteta will have some concerns with the way captain Martin Odegaard once again was kept quiet and ineffective, while Bukayo Saka was bullied too easily and was too wasteful on the ball before he was substituted near the end.

Goalkeeper & Defence

David Raya (6/10):

One typically awful pass gifted Sevilla a slight chance but was sound otherwise.

Ben White (5/10):

Poor marking when defending set-pieces.

William Saliba (7/10):

Strong and reliable as ever. Nothing got by him.

Gabriel Magalhaes (6/10):

Composed on the ball and looked solid beside Saliba.

Takehiro Tomiyasu (7/10):

Pushed high up to get involved in attack but did a good job tracking runs defensively, too.

Midfield

Martin Odegaard (5/10):

Missed a great chance in the second half and had another tame shot. Not good enough on the ball.

Jorginho (6/10):

Stable in possession and helped keep Rakitic quiet for most of the game.

Declan Rice (7/10):

Excellent in possession as he pushed up to create danger for Sevilla and was there to sweep up at the back.

Attack

Bukayo Saka (6/10):

A bit of a dead end, he struggled up against Sevilla’s muscle as he kept on getting knocked down.

Gabriel Jesus (8/10):

A brilliant performance! Amazing turn and perfect pass to set up Martinelli, then a gorgeous finish to make it 2-0.

Gabriel Martinelli (8/10):

Raced forward to get a great early chance but squandered it. Made up for it with his excellent goal on his full debut in the Champions League and was busy defensively.

Subs & Manager

Kai Havertz (5/10):

Replaced Odegaard with under 20 minutes left but barely got on the ball.

Eddie Nketiah (5/10):

A late introduction but did not get much time on the ball as Sevilla pushed up the other end.

Leandro Trossard (5/10):

Had to act more as a defender than a winger after his late arrival.

Jakub Kiwior (N/A):

Came on right at the end as Arsenal resorted to pure defence.

Mikel Arteta (7/10):

Set his team up well to dominate early on and create big chances, but they gave away control halfway through the second half and were scrambling to save the result.