Brazil have bounced back hard since their opening game hiccup at the World Cup.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men were held to a draw by Morocco in their opener, but since then, they have picked up back-to-back 3-0 wins against Haiti and Scotland.
Matheus Cunha and Vinicius Jr have been the scorers in both games and have rightly earned a ton of plaudits.
Another player who has been magnificent is Arsenal star Gabriel Magalhaes, and he showed his class against Scotland again.
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Gabriel Magalhaes was outstanding for Brazil vs Scotland
Gabriel started yet again for Brazil in the heart of their defence.
The Arsenal number six has become a mainstay in Ancelotti’s backline, and he has already produced a number of fantastic performances.
Playing alongside the mightily experienced Marquinhos, Gabriel has often looked the better defender, and that was once again the case against Scotland at the World Cup on Wednesday night.
In his 90 minutes on the pitch, the former Lille star had 107 touches of the ball and completed 93 of his 97 attempted passes, maintaining a stunning 97 per cent passing accuracy.
Defensively, Gabriel made five clearances, three recoveries and an interception. He also made a last-man tackle to help save his side.
What’s most impressive, though, is that the Arsenal defender won every single one of his seven attempted duels, thus maintaining a 100 per cent success rate.
Mikel Arteta, who once popularly said ‘when I lose a duel, I’m upset’, will absolutely love that statistic from his star centre-half.
Sofascore gave Gabriel an 8.1/10 rating; only Vinicius Jr and Alisson Becker received a higher score.
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Gabriel Magalhaes is proving that the Champions League final is not holding him back
There were a lot of concerns about Gabriel after what happened in the Champions League final.
The Brazilian stepped up for Arsenal to take the crucial fifth penalty in the shootout, and unfortunately, he blasted his strike over the bar.
Many felt that moment could really hold Gabriel back and affect his performances at the World Cup.
However, the centre-half has barely put a foot wrong since the start of the tournament, and he is right up there with the best defenders in the competition right now.
That is good news – not just for Brazil but for Premier League champions Arsenal as well.
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