If recent reports are to be believed, then Gabriel Magalhaes is on his way to Arsenal. However, the big question is whether he will have the impact that Arsenal so much crave in recent years.
Having made his move to the Ligue 1 side Lille OSC in January, 2017, he struggled in his first couple of years in Europe. He managed a paltry one (1) appearance each for the first teams of Troyes and Dinamo Zagreb whilst on loan between 2017 and 2018. He however got his big break in the second half of the 2018/19 season, and haven’t looked back since.
The 2019/2020 season saw him take giant leaps, forming a solid partnership with the experienced Jose Fonte. After missing the first two games of the season through a foot injury, he made his first appearance of the season against Saint-Etienne, and went on to start 22 of the next 25 league games of the truncated Ligue 1 season, missing only one game through injury.
His disciplinary record of only 3 yellow cards and no red card in 23 appearances in Ligue 1, and 2 yellow cards in 6 Champions league games (playing every single minute) for a defender of his caliber is impressive.
At 6foot 3inches tall, his aerial prowess is strong, wining 2 aerial duels per game, according whoscored.com. He also wins 2 tackles and makes 2 clearances per game. This compares favorably with Arsenal’s most used defender this season, David Luiz, who averages 0.8 tackles, 1 interception and 1.4 aerial duels won.
For a 22 year old, there is still much room for improvement, but his performances are reason enough for Arsenal fans to be excited about the prospect of having him in the side.
