Mikel Arteta outlines what Arsenal’s Gabriel is still struggling with since move from Lille

Arsenal held by Brighton

Arsenal’s final game before the October international break would see them face a trip to Brighton on Saturday evening.

The Gunners headed into the game looking to make it four league wins on the bounce after picking up wins over Norwich, Burnley and Tottenham.

However, Brighton started Saturday in the top six and looked set to prove Arsenal’s toughest test since their upturn in form.

And this would indeed prove to be the case, as the north Londoners were forced to settle for one point at the Amex.

Brighton actually enjoyed the better of the 90 minutes and would have come away with the win if not for some heroics on the part of Arsenal’s backline.

Last-ditch defending from #AFC 😳

Aaron Ramsdale gets a crucial touch to deny Maupay a certain goal! #BHAARS pic.twitter.com/kOYotQ0x8A

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 2, 2021

What Gabriel is still struggling with

Amongst those Arsenal defenders who starred on Sunday was Gabriel. The Brazilian signed from French outfit Lille in the 2020 summer transfer window and had a fairly mixed debut season.

However, now he has found a solid partner in Ben White, the South American has been putting on some of his best displays in an Arsenal shirt.

And, following the Brighton draw, Mikel Arteta would be asked how happy he is with the relationship Ben White and Gabriel have formed and is it coming together quicker than he thought.

When responding to this question, Arteta revealed that it is coming together quicker than he thought because Gabriel is still struggling a bit with the English language:

“Yes, because they never played together, because Gabi is still struggling a little bit with the language, because they didn’t have any time to work together in pre-season either. But they’re getting a really good connection. Good chemistry. I think their qualities match and complement each other really, really well and I think both of them today were terrific.”

Quotes via football.london.

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