Arsenal fans noticed that Gabriel Jesus’ celebration against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday appeared to have been inspired by Thierry Henry.
Gabriel Jesus produced one of the turning points of the north London derby on Saturday, pouncing on a Hugo Lloris mistake to give Arsenal an early second-half lead over their local rivals.
Jesus usually celebrates his goals by holding an imaginary phone to his face, which he’s previously explained is a nod to his mother. But on this occasion, the striker pulled out a knee slide reminiscent of another Arsenal forward.
One of Arsenal’s most iconic celebrations, Thierry Henry once ran the length of the Highbury pitch to knee slide in front of the Spurs fans with his fists clenched. The moment ended up being the model for Henry’s statue outside the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal fans noted that Jesus appeared to be paying tribute to the celebration with his own this weekend.
The North London legacy. pic.twitter.com/fuIrBiLCGH
— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) October 1, 2022
As you can see above, Jesus isn’t the only one to reference that Henry celebration, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang also doing so last season.
Still, it’s always nice for the supporters to see a new signing buying into the club’s history, and Jesus had clearly done his homework before his goal at the weekend.
Henry had a fantastic record against Tottenham Hotspur for Arsenal, never ending up on the losing side in 11 attempts, winning seven. Even one of the four draws was the result that clinched the Premier League title unbeaten in 2004.
If Jesus can kickstart a record like that of his own at Arsenal, he’ll prove very popular indeed.