HIGH-OCTANE CITY PURR BUT JESUS IN SLOW LANE
SOMETIMES when Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling are in this kind of mood it isn’t just the opposition who suffer. City’s wingers were outstanding at the Etihad, elevating the champions from an uncharacteristically lethargic display and snuffing out Bournemouth’s hopes of an upset. Compared to the high-octane performance of his two City teammates, however, Gabriel Jesus appears to be stuck in a lower gear. It has been a frustrating season for the Brazilian. This was only his third Premier League start and his only league goal came way back in August. Three of the other four goals in all competitions were scored in one game against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League last month — and two of those were penalties. In such a prolific City team, Jesus can often suffer by comparison. He only started because Pep Guardiola feared that playing top scorer Sergio Aguero with a slight muscle injury risked losing him for ‘four or five weeks’ ahead of the busiest period of the season. While Sane and Sterling tore Bournemouth apart at times, Jesus struggled to make anything like the same impression. He was replaced in the 77th minute by David Silva who immediately set up Ilkay Gundogan for the killer third goal. ‘Obviously I want to play more minutes but I respect who is playing at the moment,’ said Jesus, who missed two months at the start of the year with a knee ligament injury. ‘Hopefully I make the best out of my next chances. The game was very tough for us, mainly because the opponent played with five at the back and another line of four players in front of the defence. But I always make it clear to Pep that I’m here to help the team. Everything that happened is already in the past for me; my injury, the title, the World Cup. I want to focus on this season, not on what is gone.’ It remains to be seen if Aguero can return at Watford tomorrow but Guardiola promised to keep backing his replacement. ‘This work ethic he has, we will always sustain him,’ said the City boss. ‘We will always be there. ‘Gabriel is a delight and he helps us a lot. He’s young and he will improve because he has the desire to improve. That’s important.’ It looked like being a familiar story when Bernardo Silva fired City in front but Bournemouth grew in confidence. Callum Wilson headed an equaliser before Sterling’s strike steadied the nerves. A run of four defeats from four games is a harsh reflection on Bournemouth’s performances. Wilson said: ‘It’s been fine margins that have cost us results. ‘If we were a bit more clinical and ruthless, we would have got something out of the game.’