Arteta Praises Gabriel’s Defensive Qualities Ahead of Haaland Clash

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has highlighted defender Gabriel Magalhães’ ability to handle any opponent, including Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, ahead of a crucial Premier League meeting.

GABRIEL CAN HANDLE ANYBODY

The Arsenal defender returns after suspension straight into the deep end – a showdown against Haaland. Gabriel has struggled at times against Haaland, who has 10 goals in nine games against Arsenal since arriving in the Premier League.

Arteta insists Gabriel is world-class despite those struggles. “He can get up to anybody in the world,” Arteta said. “But he has some qualities as well that help, when he faces certain players, that I like.”

THE VERSTAPPEN IMPACT

“He defends big spaces, he loves the one-v-one challenges,” added Arteta. “And when you give him those situations, he is very comfortable and I think he enjoys it. We were watching Max Verstappen the other day doing an interview that I think summarises it very well because normally you have so much pressure on you.”

Asked why he is successful under pressure, Gabriel said: “I love this.”

WHY GABRIEL SIMILARLY THRIVES

Arteta went on to add: “You need to love what you do and you need to love the most difficult thing in football, which is for me defending big spaces and defending in one-v-one situations where you are exposed and you are under pressure. But he loves that. That’s his nature and I think that’s a key factor there.”

Arsenal can go top with a third straight league victory against Manchester City. As a note, Arsenal recently started their Champions League journey with an important win against Athletic Bilbao, which suggests they are experiencing a strong run of form, having now won two matches in a row since coming back from the international break according to reports.