Arsenal legend Ray Parlour has told Sports Mole that Gabriel Jesus is potentially the latest victim of a congested fixture schedule.
The 27-year-old has been riddled with injuries during his time at the Emirates, although a glut of appearances and goals over the festive period against Crystal Palace and Brentford suggested that the Brazilian could be returning to his best.
However, the four-time Premier League winner is now sidelined for the remainder of the campaign after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, with Gunners hero Parlour explaining Jesus's "big influence" in North London to Sports Mole.
"It's a big blow for the player. Of course, it's bad for the team as well, because he's quite a big influence around the dressing room, and he's just come into that little bit of form, he's got back into the side," said Parlour.
"But he knows now he's going to be out for nine months, which, as a player, is sometimes hard to take. I know he's been through it already, which maybe helps him - he knows he's gone through that situation with an ACL."
"Never seen so many injuries" - Are Premier League clubs in schedule hell?
Jesus is the latest high-profile star in the Premier League to suffer a season-ending knee injury, an issue that is becoming commonplace at the top level of English football.
Manchester City's hopes of securing a fifth straight domestic crown were dented significantly at the start of the campaign, when Balon d'Or-winning lynchpin Rodri sustained an ACL injury.
Discussing the situation with Sports Mole, former midfielder Parlour expressed his concern at the "ridiculous" injury landscape and suggested that "too much football" could be the main culprit.
"A little bit like Rodri... a lot of ACLs do go now, which I didn't see so much of in my day," said ex-Arsenal man Parlour.
"I don't know if it's the pitches or something that's a little bit firmer, and maybe your studs or your footwear gets stuck in the pitch a little bit more, I don't know, but there's a lot more injuries. I've never seen so many injuries anyway in the Premier League, it's ridiculous.
"Some clubs - Tottenham Hotspur have got plenty themselves, Arsenal have got loads - every single club, really, they've got so many injuries, which is unbelievable. Maybe there is too much football, who knows?"
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Light at the end of the tunnel for "disappointed" Jesus
A winner of three Premier League titles and four FA Cups during his time at Arsenal, Parlour missed Euro 2000 with England due to a knee ligament injury and, while Jesus is set for a much longer spell on the sidelines than Parlour ever had to endure, the former midfielder is empathetic to plight of the Gunners striker.
Speaking on the next steps for the Brazilian following his ACL setback, Parlour told Sports Mole: "I've never had one [ACL injury], and I've been out for about 10 weeks maximum, and I was a bit down then as well, so to do another seven months on top of that, it must be very difficult for a player, but he's got the best people around him to help him.
"As I said, he's gone through it before, which means he'll probably know exactly how he's got to get fit again. But his age and then at the time of his career, when he just got back in the side again, he'll be so disappointed, because he won't play again this season. He'll be hoping to play the latter part of the start of next season, which is a long way away.
"It's a blow for him. But look, it's happened. You've got to be positive and do your best, get fit as quick as you can, and I'm sure the Arsenal physio staff will be really looking after him and trying to do the best they can for him."
With Jesus out of action for the rest of the season, Arsenal are expected to dip into the winter market for attacking reinforcements, with Euro 2024 winner Nico Williams said to be of particular interest.
Ray Parlour was speaking to Sports Mole on behalf of NetBet Sports Betting.
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