“Wow” – Arsenal fans were blown away by “fantastic” £23m Arsenal star yesterday
Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes has been praised for his goalscoring prowess for the Gunners after notching his second goal in as many games for the Gunners in the Premier League – as Alan Shearer praised the defender as ‘fantastic’ for his proficiency from set-pieces.
The £23m Brazilian defender nabbed the only goal of the game in Arsenal’s derby day win over Tottenham Hotspur last week to avoid a potential banana skin tie at their local rivals in a 1-0 win, before his movement to get away from Manchester City star Kyle Walker saw him nod home on the stretch to put the Gunners 2-1 up away from home at their Premier League title rivals. Despite drawing 2–2 thanks to a last-minute John Stones equaliser, there are positive signs from Arsenal going forward when it comes to scoring from set-pieces – and Shearer has praised them for being ‘perfect’ at set-pieces – especially praising Gabriel for his efforts.
Shearer: ‘Fantastic’ Gabriel is ‘Magnificent’ at Set Pieces
Speaking on ‘The Rest is Football’ podcast, Gabriel earned vast praise from Shearer for his ability from corners – alongside the rest of the Arsenal entourage, who were given credit for being able to influence huge results in the matter of seconds with well-thought-out set piece routines away in their toughest games. Shearer said:
“You know, everything we said, we said it last week, didn’t we. There are so many things have to fall into place to make the perfect set piece.
“First of all, you’ve got to get the ball on the money. And then the movement, the desire, then the blocking.
“I mean, all of those things have got to happen with what, two or three seconds? And to get it, to get it right, and be as great as they are for those set-pieces is just incredible. They’re magnificent at them.
“And then for the way he [Gabriel] gets on the end of them, wow. His movement and everything else is so strong, it’s just fantastic.”
Gabriel Is One of Arsenal’s Best Goal Threats
Gabriel joined Arsenal four years ago, and in 137 games, he’s already scored 16 goals in the Premier League.
Arsenal’s new tactic of hanging the ball right under the goalkeeper’s nose suits him and William Saliba perfectly, though his more aggressive approach at winning headers from corners means that the Brazilian is genuinely one of Arsenal’s biggest threats going forward throughout matches – especially with Bukayo Saka’s pinpoint deliveries.
Having players who are adept at scoring from corners is a massive boost for clubs pushing for titles, with goals coming from all angles to down other teams. Arsenal are now different, and with the winner in the north London derby alongside the goal that clinched a point at the Etihad Stadium, it’s no wonder that Arteta has employed his tactic from the corner spot to utilise in bigger games.
