Something feels different about Arsenal this season, doesn’t it? The Gunners sit pretty at the top of the Premier League table and they have a 100% record from their three Champions League matches.
A year ago, it was a struggle. Multiple red cards and injuries plagued a heavily talented squad and, until the latter stages of European competition, they struggled to hit top gear.
Yet for all of the reliance on set-pieces, for all of the ridiculous comments on long throws in recent days, Arsenal looks like the best team in the land.
Steady on. We know. Let’s not count our chickens just yet, but everything is looking rather rosy. Mikel Arteta’s men have shipped just one open-play goal all season and are yet to concede in the Champions League.
Their forward line, as demonstrated in that stunning 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid, is improving all the time too.
That’s hardly a surprise. Andrea Berta – once of Atleti’s parish – invested KSE’s money heavily over the summer on the likes of Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze.
Gyokeres went nine goals without finding the net before his brace on Tuesday night. The relief and delight were clear to see on the Swede’s face.
The number 14 has some way to go before he can be considered an all-time great but amidst Arteta’s setup, there are a few faces beginning to make themselves modern icons. Gabriel Magalhaes is the prime example.
Why Gabriel is now the best centre-back on the planet
Swing in a corner or set-piece and there is usually one result. Gabriel will be on hand to head home.
His record in recent years and indeed this season has been extraordinary. No central defender across the top five leagues in European football has scored more goals than his tally of 22 since 2020.
The big Brazilian is inevitable and his remarkable record in 2025/26 has only strengthened his argument as the best goalscoring defender around.
In his last five games, he has scored twice and also picked up two assists. There was that crashing header in the dying embers to win the game at Newcastle United and he followed that up by flicking on Bukayo Saka’s corner for Leandro Trossard’s winner at Craven Cottage a few days ago.
His performance against Atleti, however, was colossal. It was the 27-year-old who headed the Gunners in front from Declan Rice’s teasing free-kick and it was Gabriel who got on the end of Rice’s corner minutes later in the second half. He didn’t find the net this time but he did put it on a plate for Gyokeres to score from a matter of yards out.
But, can he defend too? You bet he can. Gabriel is one of the sternest central defenders in the land.
He has been dribbled past just 0.4 times per game in the league this season and is winning 77% of his ground duels. For context, of Premier League defenders to win more than ten ground duels in 2025/26, he ranks joint-fifth for percentage of ground duels won. He sits level with Virgil van Dijk in that regard.
1. Joel Veltman
89%
2. Noussair Mazraoui
82%
3. Daniel Ballard
78.57%
3= Trevoh Chalobah
78.57%
4. Kenny Tete
77%
5. Virgil van Dijk
76.92%
5= Gabriel
76.92%
Defenders who have won 10 + duels only
So, he’s a set-piece menace. He’s a warrior, he’s a leader of men and he’s a pretty damn good defender too.
Is there anything Gabriel cannot do? Perhaps not. He is undoubtedly one of the best players we’ve seen in the Emirates Stadium era. But, is he the best?
Arsenal's best player since Arsene Wenger retired
While Arsene Wenger’s final few years at Arsenal were not as victorious and triumphant as the early days, he is still remembered fondly. Besides the great Herbert Chapman, he is the finest manager the club have ever had and he had some remarkable players in his armoury.
Whether it was Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira or Robert Pires, the greats of Arsenal were around when Wenger was.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
Yet, since he retired, the Gunners have struggled and it’s not until recent years that Arteta has transformed them into title challengers again.
The aforementioned Gabriel has been a big part of that. As has Saka. Without him, there’s a very realistic chance that Arteta wouldn’t even still be in the job.
During the infancy of the Spaniard’s coaching career in north London, it was the Hale End marvel who got the Gunners out of plenty of sticky situations.
Yet, in recent years, they’ve found a transformational player, a generational talent who looks like he could eclipse some of the best players we’ve seen at Arsenal since Wenger walked away. Mesut Ozil? He’s making a bigger impact than him. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang? He’s certainly earned more respect than their former no.14.
Even better than Gabriel and Saka? Arguably so. Rice is your man and he’s becoming one of the finest specimens in world football.
Back in 2023, Edu and Co moved heaven and earth to bring the England international to the Emirates, paying a club-record £105m to sign him from West Ham. They fended off serial winners Manchester City to do so. It was a landmark move.
Well, since heading to Arsenal, Rice has made that fee look like a bargain. Since when has that sort of money ever looked cheap? Well, West Ham must be cursing their luck that they did not get more bang for their buck.
The midfielder was a mighty fine player at West Ham but he has gone on another level after his big-money move.
At the Irons, he was seen as a defensive midfielder but Arteta has transformed him into one of the best, if not the best box-to-box midfielder in the land. Rice’s work rate is simply incredible and his ability to win the ball back is second to very few.
But, at Arsenal, he’s now become a threat in the final third. He scored nine goals and registered ten assists last term, his best tally in a single season.
While the 26-year-old has only scored once in 2025/26, he has registered four assists, all from set-pieces. Indeed, that’s one area where Rice has been exceptional, particularly in the last year.
You won’t need a reminder but we’ll bring it up again anyway. His free-kicks against Real Madrid last season were a thing of beauty. However, it’s his delivery into the box that stands out most.
He was involved in two of the four goals against Atleti this week, swinging in a delicious ball for Gabriel to head home and then firing in the corner that led to Gyokeres’ second.
In the words of Sky Sports reporter Sam Blitz, the Three Lions star is now “the best set-piece taker in world football.”
If you didn’t think Rice could get any better, think again. He is the perfect all-rounder. Gabriel is a menacing centre-back and Saka’s creativity skills are sublime. Yet, the £240k-per-week earner has it all. He can score, he assist, he can defend and he’s arguably got the best set-piece delivery in Europe.
Few will argue against just how good Rice has been since he moved across London. The best signing we’ve seen since Wenger left? It’s hard to suggest he hasn’t been.