Gabriel Jesus feels Manchester City have let down their assist king Kevin De Bruyne this season, saying the Belgium star could have had 30 assists were it not for his team-mates' wastefulness.
Jesus and De Bruyne were on target during the second half when City beat Real Madrid 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu back in February.
The long-awaited second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie takes place behind closed doors at the Etihad Stadium on Friday.
De Bruyne heads into the contest after a stunning domestic season where he matched Thierry Henry's Premier League record of 20 assists in a single campaign.
Still, Brazil striker Jesus feels that number could have been much higher, insisting City were frequently wasteful in front of goal despite scoring 102 times in the league.
"I think every game he can make three or four assists for us," he told the club's website.
"This season we miss a lot of goals, if not Kevin would have 30 assists. He is so good.
"He has so much quality and he always looks to the strikers. It is so good playing with him."
Praise has not always been so forthcoming for Jesus, who is likely to lead the City attack in Sergio Aguero's injury absence against the La Liga champions.
The 23-year-old did impress, however, in the initial clash – deployed on the left flank to fine effect in an experimental 4-4-2 system that featured De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva as false nines until the closing stages.
"I don't think it is my best performance," Jesus said of the game at the Santiago Bernabeu. "It was a top game. I scored and helped the team and that's why people say that.
"They [Madrid] played so good. It is so difficult to go there and play against them.
"We suffered in the first 15-20 minutes and after we played well. We started to play our football and after we came back and could have scored three.
"We played so good with the ball, but without the ball we played one of the best games I have seen since I came to play here."
