Can Jesus step out of Aguero's shadow?

After his two goals last night against Burnley, Gabriel Jesus made it to 52 goals in his Manchester City career - not bad for a 22-year-old who effectively plays second string to Sergio Aguero. However, doubts regarding Jesus' ability persist - so we have dug into the numbers to see if Jesus has the potential to truly establish himself at the Etihad...

Since joining Manchester City in January 2017 from Palmeiras, Jesus has had his ups and downs in a Manchester City shirt. The Brazilian moved to Manchester on the crest of a wave, crowned Player of the Season by Palmeiras who he had helped win their first league title in 22 years.

Aged just 18, Jesus scored 16 goals in 47 appearances for Palmeiras in total - and he was soon on the radar of every big club in Europe.

City won the race to sign the teenager, who signed for Pep Guardiola's side in August 2016 - although he only joined up with the team who had splashed out £27million on him the following January.

More than Aguero's sidekick?

Although he perhaps entertained the idea of being City's top gun early on, it quickly became apparent that he would play second fiddle to the prolific Sergio Aguero.

Jesus has always been considered Aguero’s natural replacement for when the 31-year-old Argentine's City career draws to a close.  

They are considerable boots to fill. Aguero is Manchester City’s all-time top goal scorer with 244 goals in his nine seasons in England, and he remains a fearsome finisher - his tendency to succumb to injuries the only real weakness in his armoury. 

True to form, Aguero has now suffered a thigh injury which has ruled him out until January 2020 at least.

Now is the time for Jesus to stake a serious claim at City - and the two goals last night against Burnley will have done his confidence no harm at all. 

Jesus v Aguero

Jesus’ first full Premier League campaign in 2017/18 yielded an impressive 13 goals in 29 appearances (10 of those as a substitute).

When comparing the two strikers that season, Jesus managed a considerable 0.7 goals per 90 minutes played, the 8th highest of any player in the Premier League that season. Aguero, however, scored 21 at a rate of a goal a game. 

Despite a lack of consistent playing time, Jesus has generally performed well for City and, more importantly, scored goals: 52 of them in 119 games in total for Manchester City, whose fans can’t complain too much considering the Brazilian spends much of his time on the bench.

Further, Jesus has only been involved in seven Manchester City defeats in his 80 Premier League matches, scoring 32 goals.  

Nine goals in his first 19 Champions League appearances showed that the forward can handle the pressure of elite football, and he is nearly a match for Aguero in terms of his strike rate in Europe: Jesus' 0.47 goals per game ratio in the Champions League not far off Aguero’s 0.54. 

When comparing Aguero and Jesus, it is important to factor in another element that favours Jesus: his age.

Jesus is still only 22 with plenty of football ahead of him, while Aguero is entering the final throes of a stellar career.

At the age of 21, Aguero was playing at Atletico Madrid, with a similar record to Jesus', scoring 12 goals in 31 games of the 2009/10 season.

The curse of being Braziian?

Jesus' statistics suggest he has done little wrong to date for a 22-year-old who is down the pecking order at his club.

However, it is fair to say that Jesus' name is not currently mentioned in the same breath as Brazil's top strikers from past and present. From Pele to Romario to R9 Ronaldo to Neymar, the best Brazilian strikers have always been at the very top of the tree.

The pressure that comes with being Brazil's top striker is huge, and Jesus is not close to being bracketed with such names.

Although Roberto Firmino plays as Liverpool’s sole striker, Brazil boss Adenor Leonardo Bacchi (known as Titi) has, however, found a way to incorporate both Firmino and Jesus in the Brazil line-up.

Titi’s system appears to be working for Jesus and, with 18 goal in 39 international appearances, the 22-year-old has made a promising start for the Seleçao.

A team player praised by Guardiola for his work ethic, Jesus has all the ingredients to be a world star.

Now is really the time for Jesus: Aguero is out and City need to win games to give themselves any chance of reeling in Liverpool for a second successive season.

The sidekick has bided his time and played his part well as a deputy. The coming month or so may give us a clearer indication of whether Jesus has enough in his locker to establish himself as Man City's number one striker.  

🇧🇷Highest scoring Brazilians in Premier League history:
51⚽️: Roberto Firmino
41⚽️: Philippe Coutinho
30⚽️: 💛GABRIEL JESUS💚
29⚽️: Willian
29⚽️: Juninho
21⚽️: Oscar#MCFC @ManCity pic.twitter.com/g9e3KGIVT8

— playmakerstats (@playmaker_EN) October 19, 2019