Arsenal picked up yet another historic North London Derby win as they came back from behind to beat rivals Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium.
Heung-Min Son opened the scoring for the visitors with his strike from the edge of the box, despite the Gunners dominating the early proceedings.
Mikel Arteta would’ve feared a similar story to the previous two matches, where domination and chances were not put away and defeat was tasted instead.
Fortunately, that wasn’t the case as Arsenal hit back through a Dominic Solanke own goal and a neat finish from Leandro Trossard.
While there were plenty of rave reviews across the whole team, it was Gabriel Magalhaes who came in for plenty of attention.
- READ MORE: Kieran Tierney has Arsenal fans all saying the same thing after his Tottenham performance
Gabriel Magalhaes bags another Player of the Match award vs Tottenham
Some players are simply built for the big moments and over the years, Gabriel Magalhaes has morphed into one of those.
The Brazilian has been reliable in recent seasons, showing a steely resolve, grit and determination that is needed for a team challenging at the top.
Being made for the big moments goes hand in hand with good performances in the North London Derby – which can often be a fiery encounter.
Such was his colossal display, Gabriel went on to bag the Player of the Match award with some key moments in the match.
The centre-back will feel aggrieved that he didn’t have a goal to his name, though he did essentially set up the equaliser with his movement and header at the back post from Declan Rice’s corner.
Back to his usual defensive abilities and the defender was capable of making some huge last-ditch challenges to deny the away side.
Given Arsenal’s dominance, it’s easy to forget the lead was just a slender one and it needed protecting by Gabriel.
It was the third Player of the Match scooped up by the Brazilian against Tottenham, outlining his love of playing in the North London Derby.
It’s a feat that not even Erling Haaland and all his goalscoring grace have managed against Spurs since he joined the league – with the striker only winning two of five encounters with them.
Gabriel Magalhaes record vs Tottenham
In his career so far, Gabriel has faced off with Tottenham in the North London Derby ten time so far, with an impressive record.
The star has won seven of those encounters, drawing once and losing just twice since the first encounter in 2020.
| Wins | 7 |
| Draws | 1 |
| Defeats | 2 |
| Goals | 1 |
He may feel hard done by that he only has one goal to his name, with a second that could’ve been his in the recent clash – eventually being marked down as an own goal for Dominic Solanke instead.
Gabriel’s last defeat against Spurs came in 2022, with an incredible six-match unbeaten run with him in the side.
It’s a fixture he is starting to relish as he becomes Tottenham’s worst nightmare.
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