Brazilian defender Gabriel, who is a target for Arsenal and is valued at £30 million by Lille, has confirmed his aspirations to play in the Premier League.
In an interview with French outlet Telefoot, as translated by The Sun, Brazilian defender Gabriel has responded to rumours linking him with a switch to Arsenal. The 22-year-old, who is priced at £30 million by Lille, has confirmed that he has ambitions to play in the Premier League.
Gabriel joined Lille from Dinamo Zagreb in the summer of 2018, but took his time to establish himself in the first-team setup at the club. In his first season with the Ligue 1 outfit, the 22-year-old started just 13 games across all competitions, although he was influential in the second half of the campaign, as Les Dogues qualified for the Champions League.
This season, however, Gabriel has become a mainstay at the back for Lille, missing just two league games when fit and available. His exploits with the French club also seem to have helped him garner a lot of interest in his services, with Arsenal reportedly keeping tabs on his progress.
Arsenal have made a marked improvement under the tutelage of Mikel Arteta, which was yet again evident in the 4-0 win over Newcastle United this past weekend. However, it is worth noting that Sokratis Papastathopoulos and David Luiz both on the wrong side of thirty.
While Arsenal signed Pablo Mari in the January transfer window, it is not a certainty that they will sign him permanently in the summer. William Saliba will make his long-awaited arrival in the summer, while Arteta will also have the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Rob Holding and Calum Chambers at his disposal.
However, another central defensive signing in Gabriel could help him create a solid long-term unit. And, in an interview with Telefoot, the 22-year-old responded on the links with Arsenal, iterating in a coy manner that he has ambitions to play in the Premier League. As translated by The Sun, Gabriel said, “Maybe I don’t know, but I would love to play in the Premier League.”
The report by The Sun suggests that Lille value Gabriel at £30 million, which is not a steep amount considering the valuations in the transfer market these days. A burly left-footed defender, Gabriel could add a lot of value to the Arsenal squad, and it remains to be seen if a summer move sees the light of the day.
In spite of having watched Carlos Alberto absolutely master the position when I was younger, I have always been a little leary about Brazilian centerbacks. It’s not a position where Brazil has produced a lot of quality players over the years. If Arsenal is going to bring in Gabriel, the scouts better have done their homework on him extremely well. With Upamecano costing £20-30 million more and Mavropanos putting in dominating performances in Germany on loan, Arsenal better be sure that they are not wasting precious transfer monies on less than a sure thing if they choose to sign Gabriel.