By going through the latest list of the Brazilian coach, Dorival Júnior, three observations stand out: the Seleção has cruelly lost in quality, OL still manages to produce Brazilian internationals, and above all, Gabriel Jesus has had his politeness grilled by a namesake named Igor. If in Brazil, the presence of the Botafogo player is not a surprise, in France, his simple existence is one. Coming from the 2001 auriverde generation like Rodrygo or Martinelli, Igor Jesus has never been cataloged as the phenomenon of his age group, and had to overcome 1000 obstacles before arriving in the selection.
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Unlike the other two cities, the 23-year-old striker has for example never known the Hopes box. His only feat of arms at the international level? His few selections in the Brazilian U15 categories, before disappearing from the CBF radars. At the club, everything has not been successful for him either, as evidenced by his choice to leave his home in Coritiba, in 2020, after failing to establish himself as a professional. Then aged 19, he gave in to the sirens of the Gulf by joining the Emirati club Shabab Al-Ahli. If this choice was surprising at first, he has very good memories of it.
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He could have played for the UAE team
As he recently told TNT Sports BrazilJesus could have played for the Emirati selection thanks to his naturalized status. But deep down, the former Coritiba player always believed in his chances of one day wearing the Seleçao jersey, the ultimate holy grail for a Brazilian player. After four seasons at the Emirates (43 goals and 20 assists in 87 matches), the man who is quite easily identified by his Iroquois crest, therefore signed freely with Botafogo. A way to show off in a championship dear to coach Dorival, who has played on around twenty Brazilian benches since 2002. If his starting place was in no way assured with the presence of the fans’ favorite, Tiquinho Soares, Jesus was able to shake up the established order. Because since his arrival in July, his association with Luiz Henrique – who became a Brazilian international a month before him and expected to join OL in the months to come – continues to do damage.
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A round-trip scorer in the Copa Libertadores 1/8 final against last year’s semi-finalist, Palmeiras, Jesus also shone in the league thanks to crucial goals against Flamengo and Fortaleza, two title contenders. If his raw statistics are not dizzying (6 goals and 1 assist in 18 matches), they do not tell the whole story of his influence. “We lost Richarlison, João Pedro and Pedro (Henrique) to injury. This situation forced us to broaden our observations. We watched Igor Jesus, who stood out by achieving a major Brazilian championship with the leader Botafogo, and by being one of the major players in the team’s success.expressed Dorival last week to justify the summons of the 23-year-old striker. This Friday, Jesus is even expected to start in place of Endrick against Chile, as indicated by his coach. The opportunity to show that he is much more than just a temporary worker.
Pub. the 10/10/2024 13:36
Update 10/10/2024 22:14
