Jesus urges Arsenal players to "protect themselves" amid "kick them back" claim

Arsenal's new talisman Gabriel Jesus has insisted he will not be bullied by Premier League defenders next term and has demanded his new side "protect themselves" as they bid for a return to the top-four.

The Brazilian arrived in north London from Manchester City earlier this month and while pre-season is not always the best indicator of what is to come - Jesus has been undeniably irresistible for the Gunners during the recent tours of Germany and the United States.

While the Brazilian has netted three goals in three games, it is has been his battling, combative sprit that has delighted the Arsenal faithful watching on from the other side of the pond. Jesus has shown he fears no defender, no matter how much bigger they may be in size and stature - just ask Everton's Yerry Mina.

A known antagonist to strikers up and down the league, Mina and Jesus were actually teammates together at Pameiras - yet that did not stop the Toffees centre-back from some over-zealous challenges on the Arsenal forward alongside some verbal back-and-forth to match.

"I've played with Mina before in Palmeiras and we were so close together, and after — I don't know why — he started to touch me, to pinch me on my chest and then talking s***,' explained Jesus. "I'm not a kid any more and I went straight to him as well.

"Sometimes the defenders kick you so much, your reaction is to kick as well. Always in my life I try to be calm, to concentrate on the game, because anything can happen.

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"Sometimes they've almost broken my leg and the referee said no and was laughing in my face. Sometimes the referee has to protect the attackers. So sometimes we protect ourselves."

The words will make for welcome reading from the perspective of manager Mikel Arteta, who has previously admitted his side have at times been lacking the kind of street-wise tactics to help them get through some of the more physical battles.

After Jesus' battle with Mina, his manager was quick to publicly praise him by adding: "I love those kinds of players. Streetwise, they learn a lot, they know how to feel, they can take advantage of any situation and that's what we need."

For years, even long before Arteta's reign as manager and dating back to when the Spaniard was actually playing for the Gunners himself - Arsenal have been accused of being a soft touch, pushovers that down tools the moment things get difficult.

Whether that has been true on every occasion is debatable, but one thing that is not up for debate is the impact Jesus is already having on the Arsenal dressing room.

Eddie Nketiah, far from feeling inferior with a new striker on the scene, appears to have struck up the closest bond with the Brazilian out of everyone. Not only that, the former England Under-21 star also looks to have raised his game to match the level of his four-time Premier League winning strike partner.