Arsenal's Wild Victory Celebrations Spark Sanction Threats and Social Media Fury
The festivities monitoring authorities have been working overtime following Arsenal's commanding 4–1 victory over Aston Villa on Tuesday night.
While Gabriel Jesus potentially faces FA disciplinary action after displaying a religious statement, his fellow Brazilian Gabriel Magalhães caught attention when he seemed to copy and taunt Villa midfielder Amadou Onana's signature celebration.
Arsenal had ample cause for jubilation after their concluding match of 2025. Following a challenging opening 45 minutes against Unai Emery's impressive visitors where they struggled significantly, Gabriel surged forward from the back line to open the scoring with a scrappy finish from another set piece.
The home side established their dominance afterward, quickly extending their advantage through Martín Zubimendi before Leandro Trossard's cleanly struck third goal was confirmed after a VAR check.
Jesus secured Arsenal's fourth and his maiden goal in 363 days. It has been a challenging rehabilitation journey for the 28-year-old, who suffered an ACL injury in an FA Cup match against Manchester United last January. "It was 11 months, 11 months of questioning yourself," he reflected.
Given that background, Jesus's excellent finish to complete a smooth Arsenal counter-attack in the 78th minute triggered an emotional celebration from both the player and the Emirates faithful. The forward marked the moment by removing his jersey to display an undershirt reading: "I Belong to Jesus." The design matched exactly the font and style that Brazilian star Kaká revealed after AC Milan's memorable Champions League final triumph over Liverpool in 2007.
Unlike Kaká's European competition display, Jesus operates under the stringent rules of England's football governing body. Law 4 in the FA rulebook directly addresses these celebrations. It states: "Players must not display undergarments containing political, religious, personal messages, statements or images, or advertising beyond the manufacturer's logo.
"For any violation the player and/or the club will face sanctions from the competition organizer, national football association or FIFA."
Unless Jesus can argue he was referencing himself, his message carries clear religious meaning. The devout Christian has never concealed his beliefs. If anything, the devastating injury has strengthened his spiritual conviction.
"Every single day for the initial two or three weeks, I questioned why this happened to me," he remembered. "Then I realized I needed to draw closer to Jesus, to God, to study the Bible. It supported me tremendously, because it maintained my faith that I'm God's child and could accomplish anything through His plan.
"Without hearing the Bible daily, I'm completely certain I wouldn't have believed I could return stronger than before. Now my faith is even greater, because I'm God's son."
Fortunately for the self-described believer, he has recent examples supporting him. Liverpool's Cody Gakpo displayed an identical undershirt in April 2025 and received only a yellow card as punishment.
Gabriel Magalhães Clarifies Bold Pocket Celebration
Jesus's Brazilian teammate and namesake attracted notice for his post-match celebration. Walking through the Emirates Stadium tunnel, Arsenal's first goalscorer was captured by club cameras, theatrically placing three extended fingers—representing each point earned that evening—into his pocket.
Supporters quickly recognized that Villa's Onana had executed the same gesture to celebrate defeating Arsenal in Birmingham in early December. Rather than targeting the Gunners specifically, the Belgian midfielder has adopted this innocent display throughout Villa's recent successful streak.
Gabriel was eager to minimize any suggestion of malicious intent behind his actions, despite it being a clear reference to Onana.
"Absolutely, absolutely," he confirmed. "These kinds of things motivate you. It's entertaining. It's enjoyable for them, it's enjoyable for us too. As I mentioned, we secured the three points. It wasn't meant to retaliate or target Onana specifically. I know he's a decent person. So yes, no hostility, nothing. It was simply a way to celebrate."