Tony Cascarino has raved about Arsenal central defender Gabriel in The Times and has said that the Gunners defender is not always given enough credit.
The former Chelsea star has been hugely impressed by Gabriel and has outlined how the Brazilian defender is helping his Arsenal teammate William Saliba.
The talkSPORT pundit made the comments about the £23 million (BBC Sport) star after Arsenal’s 1-0 win against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium in the Premier League this past weekend.
The win has maintained Arsenal’s chances of winning the league title this season.
Tony Cascarino on Arsenal defender Gabriel
Cascarino wrote: “In all the excitement about William Saliba’s performances for Arsenal this season, I think people have not given enough credit to his central defensive partner Gabriel.
“The Brazilian is the only outfield player to have played every minute of Arsenal’s league matches so far and I think he has thrived alongside Saliba.
“The task of being the senior partner to a guy who is an outstanding talent but is only 21 has really brought a new maturity to Gabriel’s game.
“The way Arsenal play, swarming forward to smother opponents, means the defenders often have to defend big areas when opponents do get past their press.
“But Gabriel and Saliba have been great at this, which is especially impressive given centre halves usually reach their peak later in their careers; they are already the best duo in the league.”
Quality defender
In our view, Gabriel is one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League and is a key figure at Arsenal.
The Brazilian has progressed a lot at Arsenal and has become a better defender under manager Mikel Arteta.
As Cascarino notes, Gabriel is not always in the headlines and does tend to go under the radar.
However, we believe that everyone at Arsenal knows just how good the defender is.
The 25-year-old has scored two goals in 24 Premier League appearances for Arsenal so far this season.
Gabriel has also made four starts and one substitute appearance in the UEFA Europa League for the Gunners so far this campaign.
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