Arsenal were staring a very disappointing Carabao Cup exit in the face at half-time when they trailed Crystal Palace 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.
But it was in the second 45 minutes that the home side sprang to life, and ultimately clinched a spot in the last four.
Gabriel Jesus netted a hat-trick in what was eventually a 3-2 win for Mikel Arteta’s men, but while it’s easy to assume the credit can go to the Brazilian striker snapping into action after the break or perhaps the head coach’s interval team talk, there seems to be another catalyst for the turnaround.
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During a post-match interview, Jesus explained what he feels was the key to the Gunners snatching victory from a possible defeat.
Gabriel Jesus post-match quotes
He said: “Obviously the first half wasn’t our best, but still in the second half we did our job, we created more, we kept the ball more, circulated the ball, made passes and then Martin [Odegaard] put in two amazing balls in the end and [Bukayo Saka] as well, and I could finish the action.
“The quality that Martin has is amazing. He’s a type of a player that can pass these balls and put you in front of the goal.
“That’s what I was telling him; I said ‘Martin I know your qualities, so I’ll go in behind. If it’s open, I go, you don’t need to look, I will be there.’ He played amazing balls and I was able to finish the action.
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“[Saka] as well, but I think everyone today tried their best, it’s not easy when you change a lot, normally we don’t play together a lot in the games, and that’s a little bit tricky.
“At the end we did our job and won the game.”
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