Gabriel and William Saliba have been lauded again after starring in Arsenal's huge victory over Tottenham in the north London derby. The Gunners headed into Wednesday night's match knowing that they could cut the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to four points with a win, while a defeat would have given Arne Slot's men a massive chance to extend their lead given they have now played a game less than the Londoners.
But Arsenal showed tremendous character to record a deserved 2-1 victory at The Emirates after cancelling out Son Heung-min's opener with two quickfire goals. It was Gabriel whose header deflected in off the unfortunate Dominic Solanke to restore parity for Arsenal before Leandro Trossard plundered their winner just minutes later. But the Brazilian and his defensive partner were the two stars singled out by Pat Nevin.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, the pundit said: “Sometimes you have to be good defensively and take the sneaky chance when it comes. “When Spurs were breaking they never looked like getting by those two [Gabriel and Saliba] - those two were magnificent. It was a masterclass from Gabriel and Saliba.”.
While Gabriel and Saliba have earned plenty of praise this season following a string of imperious displays, Arsenal have struggled for goals recently following the loss of Bukayo Saka to injury. Gabriel Jesus is also now sidelined, too, after rupturing his ACL at the weekend.
Arsenal looked a real threat against their arch-rivals, though, with Son's opening strike coming very much against the run of play. And Speaking post-match, Declan Rice brought up how Arsenal could - and perhaps should - have added some gloss to the result in the second half.
