Gabriel has scored 22 goals in all competitions for Arsenal since the start of the 2020/21 season, cementing his status as one of Europe’s most valuable defenders.
Andy Dunn is the Mirror’s chief sportswriter.
Although an old idea, it’s hard to argue with the idea that a good central defensive partnership is the foundation on which all great teams are built. Sir Alex Ferguson, who famously said, “You win games with attack and you win titles with defense,” would no doubt agree.
There must be exceptions to that rule. Most of them are probably coached by manager Josep Guardiola, whose defensive philosophy is usually attacking. But top-notch defense underpins most success, and of course a dominant central unit is essential to that. In the Premier League era, the most effective combinations have probably been Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister, John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho, and Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
William Saliba and Gabriel are knocking on the cartel’s door with the very important caveat that they need to win the Premier League or the Champions League. Chelsea’s 2004/05 defense, which featured a partnership between Terry and Carvalho for much of the season, conceded a Premier League record 15 goals.
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This works out to 0.394 goals per game. Arsenal are currently conceding 0.375 goals per game in the Premier League this season.
They take very few shots on target, never mind the actual goals. It’s safe to say that Saliba and Gabriel have a lot to do with it.
Two of the three goals Arsenal have conceded in the Premier League this season have come when this pairing has not been working well. Saliba was off the field for a long time when Dominik Szoboszlai scored Liverpool’s winning goal, but he appeared on the pitch at St. James’ Park when Arsenal equalized with a goal from Nick Woltemaid.
Like all combinations, Saliba and Gabriel complement each other perfectly. For example, the Frenchman came to the Brazilian’s aid on Tuesday night in a rare moment when Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez caused trouble.
But apart from Erling Haaland, it’s hard to think of anyone more important to Arsenal’s Premier League side than Gabriel. That applies both domestically and in Europe.
Gabriel is dominant in his own penalty area, and his threat in the opposition box is well proven. His goal against Atlético was his 22nd in all competitions since the start of the 2020-21 season, the most by a centre-half for any team in Europe’s top five competitions.
If you’re interested in Fantasy Premier League, Gabriel is at the top of the defensive ranks. Gabriel, 27, was the subject of strong interest from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2024, but Arsenal had no such interest and his contract runs until the summer of 2029.
For some time, Saliba was seen as a key figure in Arsenal’s defence. Now, this double act is receiving justifiable praise.
And at the moment, there is no centre-half as attacking, as dominant in the air, as skilled as Gabriel. He is truly precious.
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