With both William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães having spent spells on the sidelines this season, the debate over who truly deserves the title of Arsenal’s most important centre-back has intensified. While Gabriel has dominated the conversation in recent months, it is easy to forget that he was once considered the lesser-known half of the pairing.
Saliba’s calm, almost Virgil van Dijk–esque style can see him fly under the radar, both in statistical analysis and the traditional “eye test.” Yet the data highlights just how central he is to Arsenal’s control of matches. Per 90 minutes, Saliba attempts around 70 passes with a completion rate above 93%, comfortably higher than Gabriel’s output, underlining his importance to Arsenal’s build-up play. He also ranks higher for progressive passes and touches per game, allowing Arsenal to sustain pressure high up the pitch rather than defending deep. His composure is not passive; it is structural.
By contrast, Gabriel’s impact is impossible to ignore. His game is built on confrontation and physical dominance. FBref-style metrics show Gabriel records more blocks and clearances per 90, while also winning more aerial duels per game than Saliba. This is reflected in his role as Arsenal’s primary box defender and set-piece threat. Gabriel remains one of the Premier League’s most dangerous centre-backs from dead-ball situations, while his aerial success offers crucial protection when Arsenal are forced into deeper defensive phases.
Which brings us to the inevitable question: who is the better of this infamous duo? The debate often feels like hard work versus natural talent. Gabriel arrived in England rough around the edges aggressive, occasionally rash learning his craft the hard way in the Premier League. Saliba, on the other hand, was labelled a prodigy long before he turned eighteen, once described by L’Équipe as the “Kylian Mbappé of defenders,” a player whose composure and elegance suggested greatness almost before he had begun.
Defensive data reinforces this stylistic contrast. Saliba averages more interceptions and successful one-on-one tackles per 90, while being dribbled past less frequently a sign of anticipation rather than reaction. Gabriel, meanwhile, commits more defensive actions overall, including blocks and last-ditch interventions, often because Arsenal face more pressure when he is required to defend deeper zones.
When Arsenal are missing one of their centre-halves, the impact becomes impossible to ignore. In matches where Gabriel is absent, Arsenal’s win percentage drops from 64.3% to just 40%, with fewer clean sheets and a noticeable increase in big chances conceded. His absence weakens Arsenal’s ability to dominate aerially and defend their box, particularly against physical or direct opponents.
However, the numbers suggest Saliba’s absence is even more damaging. When Saliba starts, Arsenal win approximately 74% of their matches. Without him, that figure collapses, with Arsenal losing around 45.5% of games played in his absence. Goals conceded per match rise sharply, and Arsenal’s points per game drop by a significant margin. The data suggests that without Saliba, Arsenal lose not just defensive quality, but control of the entire game state.
Together, Saliba and Gabriel form one of the Premier League’s most complementary partnerships: control and aggression, anticipation and confrontation. Separately, Arsenal lose different things but the evidence increasingly points toward Saliba as the defender whose absence destabilises the system as a whole.
Both William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães are elite centre-backs, and Arsenal’s defensive success over the past two seasons is built on their partnership rather than individual brilliance alone. Gabriel provides aggression, aerial dominance and a constant threat in both boxes qualities Arsenal visibly miss when he is absent. His impact is tangible, confrontational and often game-changing.
However, when the debate shifts from who is the best to who is the most important, the data points decisively in one direction. Arsenal’s results, defensive stability and overall control deteriorate far more dramatically without Saliba than without Gabriel. The drop in win percentage, the increase in goals conceded and the loss of composure in build-up all underline how foundational the Frenchman is to Mikel Arteta’s system.
Saliba is the defender who allows Arsenal to play their game. His anticipation reduces danger before it develops, his recovery pace enables a high defensive line, and his passing sustains pressure rather than inviting it. While Gabriel fights fires, Saliba prevents them from starting.
In isolation, Gabriel may appear the more dominant presence. But over the course of a season, it is Saliba’s quiet control rather than Gabriel’s visible intensity that proves most irreplaceable. The numbers, the structure and the results all suggest the same conclusion: William Saliba is Arsenal’s most important centre-half.