Manchester City’s new signing Gabriel Jesus hacked from behind by a pitch invader during a charity clash before falling to the ground in a heap
Pep Guardiola would have been delighted to see his £27m man get back to his feet after the dangerous lunge
PEP GUARDIOLA would have had his hands covering his eyes after a pitch invader hacked new signing Gabriel Jesus from behind during a friendly.
The Brazilian was taking part in a charity match between the Amigos do Jackson and Amigos do Valdiva in Brazil on Wednesday.
And as the £27million man was dribbling the ball towards the box, a fan from the crowd ran onto the pitch before lunging at the 21-year-old.
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Jesus landed to the ground in a heap but fortunately for City boss Guardiola, he eventually got to his feet.
In any normal fixture, the challenge could be worthy of a straight red card as security intervened before leading the pitch invader off the field.
Man City are expecting big things from their talented forward who Pele described as "the best player we [Brazil] have."
Jesus signed for City in the summer but remained in Brazil to help guide Palmeiras to their first league title in 22 years.
And his fine form, in which he scored 12 goals in 26 appearances, recently earned him the Golden Ball after being crowned Brazil's Player of the Year.
Known as the Bola de Ouro, the likes of Neymar, Ronaldinho and Carlos Tevez are previous winners of the award.
Guardiola will welcome the striker to his squad once he has had a break from his full season in Brazil.
After having his sit down with Guardiola, Begiristain and the Brazilian midfield duo Fernando and Fernandinho, the City boss has banned Jesus from drinking Coke.
The Samba star also watched his new teammates from the stands to watch their 3-1 defeat to Chelsea at the Etihad.