The three weeks that could define Gabriel Jesus' Man City career

It is incredible that a striker who averages a goal or assist every 104 minutes in his career is not first choice for club or country.

But that is the situation facing Manchester City and Brazil striker, who is in the unenviable position of fighting Sergio Aguero and Neymar for a place in the starting XI.

Yet Jesus has 22 goals to his name this season, and put in a dominant performance in the FA Cup Final earlier this month to remind Pep Guardiola that he can be trusted on the big stage.

But it is a pattern of Jesus' young career since moving to City that he has to fight more than most for his place, even if he is scoring regularly.

So videos this week of Jesus expressing himself with the Brazil squad are refreshing to see, and hint that the 22-year-old knows how important the forthcoming Copa America tournament is.

One clip shows Jesus winning a game of table-tennis football alongside Neymar in front of their watching teammates, while another sees the striker finishing a team move in training with a typically Brazilian flick.

Such flair is necessary if you are to stand out as a Selecao player, and standing out is exactly what Jesus must do this summer.

Despite starting all of Brazil's World Cup fixtures last summer as the central striker, he has started just one game upfront since for his country.

As Brazil prepare for the three-week Copa America campaign on home soil, Jesus might never have a better chance to win that place back.

With Neymar stripped of the captaincy, and Roberto Firmino still preparing for the Champions League final, there is every chance he will start their opening fixture against Bolivia on June 14. Jesus is Brazil's most reliable, match-fit and in-form striker, and this is a chance that will not come around very often.

He's certainly showing a hunger for the tournament that Brazil must have in front of their own fans who demand a better performance than the disastrous 2014 World Cup.

It is time for Jesus to graduate from being the talented prospect for the future and show the world he can lead a team in the present.

If he can do that and help Brazil on their way to a morale-boosting Copa America campaign, then Pep Guardiola will have no choice but to provide Jesus with more responsibility next season.