Arsenal Might Sell Their Defender For £100 Million If Saudi Come Calling: What Will Be The Impact?

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·20 Maret 2025

Arsenal Might Sell Their Defender For £100 Million If Saudi Come Calling: What Will Be The Impact?

Arsenal have tried their best to compete for the Premier League this season but still Liverpool are the favourites to win the Premier League this season. The Gunners have shown transformation under Mikel Arteta and are also in the quarterfinal of the UEFA Champions League this season. An integral part of the transformation has been the centre-back pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.

In an exclusive interview with Caught Offside, Charles Watts stated that Arsenal were very tested that the defender might leave the club at the start of the 2023-24 season amidst huge interest from Saudi Arabia. There was a feeling within the club that the Brazilian was lured to the lucrative contract in Saudi. He was not part of the playing XI in the initial part of the season and Mikel Arteta brushed it aside for tactical reasons.

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Arsenal Might Sell Their Defender Gabriel Maghalaes for £100 Million

Watts has stated that it was false and the 27-year-old was benched due to the then ongoing rumours about Saudi. After the rumours died down, he was again part of the playing XI and since then formed an important partnership with Saliba. The partnership is definitely the best defensive partnership in the Premier League and Arsenal would definitely not want to lose either of them.

However, Watts revealed that the Saudi links could emerge yet again in the summer and if Arsenal does need to sell him finally, they will demand £100 million for him. Arsenal’s Brazilian rock, anchors the backline with grit and guile. His towering frame dominates aerial duels, swatting away crosses like flies.

Strong as an ox, the defender bullies strikers off the ball, possessing physicality with sharp anticipation to snuff out the danger. Gabriel is no slouch with his feet either. He is comfortable passing out from the back and is a modern defender with composure. Gabriel’s aggression shines in set-piece attacks, often nodding home crucial goals. At 27, the defender’s tenacity and leadership have turned Arsenal’s defence into a fortress.

Moreover, he has conceded 21 goals and kept 10 clean sheets in 27 matches in the Premier League 2024/2025 season. That means when Magalhaes is on the pitch, his team concedes a goal every 112 minutes. The defender has also scored 3 goals in 27 matches so far in the Premier League 2024/2025 season with a G/A of 4.

“The interest from Saudi Arabia in Gabriel Magalhaes is nothing new, it dates back a couple of years now,” Watts said. In the summer of 2023 there were fears at Arsenal that Gabriel’s head had been turned by the money that was on offer, which was why he was left out of the team in those early games that season. Mikel Arteta publicly said it was tactical, but it wasn’t. It was because of what was going on behind the scenes with the interest from Saudi.Arsenal did not want to lose him and ultimately Gabriel stayed put, with Arteta swiftly restoring him to his starting XI once the situation was put to bed. Since then Gabriel has obviously gone to form what, in my opinion, is the best centre-back partnership in the Premier League and possibly even the world with William Saliba. So the last thing Arsenal would want this summer is a repeat of what happened in 2023, but it would be no surprise if the interest from Saudi did result in a firm offer, although at this stage it is a bit too early to suggest it definitely will.Obviously every player has a price, so I can’t sit here and say Arsenal should not even contemplate a sale should a bid arrive, but it would have to be huge to tempt them into doing business – over £100m in my opinion. Gabriel is so important to this team at both ends of the pitch. He’s comfortably my Arsenal player of the season and along with Saliba he is the bedrock that the side is built on.”

For an Arsenal fan, it will be a relief hearing Charles Watts debunk the early 2023-24 drama around Gabriel Magalhaes. Word was Saudi’s big money tempted him, and his benching fueled the whispers—Arteta’s “tactical” excuse didn’t fool them. Turns out, it was the rumours sidelining him. Now, paired with Saliba, he’s half of the Premier League’s meanest defence—rock-solid and irreplaceable. Watts says Saudi might come knocking again, but £100m or bust? Fair. Losing Gabriel would gut Arsenal; his grit is key to their fight. The fans will be praying that he stays put.