Arsenal have signed Brazilian defender Gabriel from Lille for £27m on a long-term contract.
Manchester United, Everton and Serie A club Napoli had all held an interest in centre-back Gabriel, who made 34 appearances in all competitions last season as Lille finished fourth in Ligue 1.
The 22-year-old bolsters Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta’s options in defence that will be further boosted by William Saliba, who spent last season on loan at St Etienne following his £27m signing from the French club last summer.
Gabriel, who played in all six of Lille’s Champions League group stage matches last season, is Arsenal’s second major summer signing following compatriot Willian’s move from Chelsea on a free transfer.
Centre-back Gabriel can cover a rampaging left-back, with the majority of his defensive actions made down that flank, while also clearing things up in his own penalty box
Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares made their loan moves permanent from Flamengo and Southampton respectively earlier this summer.
Gabriel is the second player to join Arsenal from Lille in the past 12 months, following Ivory Coast international Nicolas Pepe’s move to the Emirates for a club-record £72m last summer.
“We welcome Gabriel to Arsenal,” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta told the club’s website. “He has many qualities which will make us stronger as a defensive unit and as a team.
“He has proved with Lille that he is a defender with many outstanding attributes and we are looking forward to watching him grow as an Arsenal player.”
Technical director Edu added: “We are delighted to have signed Gabriel. He is a player we have been studying for a while and he was in demand from many clubs, so we are proud to have agreed and completed this transfer with Lille and the player.
“Gabriel is a player of high quality and Mikel and his coaches are looking forward to integrating him into the club.”
Gabriel started his career at Avai, a side who currently play in the second tier of Brazilian football.
After 21 appearances, he made the move to Europe in January 2017, signing for Ligue 1 side Lille for a fairly modest fee of £1.5m.
Gabriel initially struggled to adapt to senior football at Lille and went out on loan twice. First to Troyes, where he spent the first half of the 2017/18 season, before a temporary move to Dynamo Zagreb in January 2018.
First-team opportunities continued to evade him, moving between the reserve and senior sides before returning to Lille for the start of the 2018/19 season.
Gabriel took his time to cement himself in the side, not starting a Ligue 1 game until February 2019. But he has not looked back since; forging a relatively successful partnership with former Southampton player Jose Fonte at centre-back.
After a seven-year absence, Gabriel helped Lille qualify for the Champions League in 2018/19, finishing second in Ligue 1 to PSG.
Gabriel continued his ascent last season, with a string of impressive performances both domestically and in the Champions League. – Sky Sports.
