Gabriel Jesus found humor in the on-field clash between his Arsenal teammate Ben White and Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto during their USA pre-season tour opener.
Ben White, known for his combative style, was up to his usual antics during corner kicks, using physical play to disrupt Neto. This tactic, common in White’s Premier League performances, saw him jostling with Neto and Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez. Despite it being a friendly match, White’s aggressive approach led to contact with the Brazilian goalkeeper, who managed to punch the ball away and received a foul.
The game, which ended 1-1 in Los Angeles, featured goals from Arsenal’s Fabio Vieira and Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo. A penalty shootout ensued due to the pre-season format. During the wait, Jesus, Neto, and White were seen laughing about the incident, showing there were no hard feelings.
Arsenal had the last laugh as goalkeeper Karl Hein saved two penalties, and Jakub Kiwior secured the win with the decisive penalty. Manager Mikel Arteta expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance and particularly praised the young players for stepping up.
“I’m really pleased because we had really special circumstances today,” Arteta said post-match. “We arrived two days ago, we had so many young kids playing with us that had never played before and I think we had a really strong performance against a side that is a bit ahead of us in their schedule.
“They [Bournemouth] had a full first-team available, so I’m really proud of them, both the young kids and the senior ones, because they have fulfilled their roles in a really impressive way. That was a different level today to the game that we played last Saturday [beating League One side Leyton Orient 2-0 behind-closed-doors], and it was another big step.
“We looked really connected and as a manager, it was just a joy to see the faces of those kids making their debut, participating, and the excitement showed, and as well to see our senior players put themselves in their shoes and give them the support and be the role models that we want.”
Next up, Arsenal will face Manchester United, where White’s competitive spirit will surely be on display again.
