Defend 40 yards of space. Break the midfield lines with incisive passes. Beat the press. Score from set-pieces.
The demands on the modern centre back have grown exponentially from the good old days of stop it and clear it. Defenders from yesteryear might shudder at the thought of it; their ability to tackle and clear their lines was until recently the barometer a defender was judged by.
Yet, at Arsenal, they have arguably Europe’s most complete centre-back pairing. William Saliba and Gabriel do it all – and to a remarkable level, too.
Under Mikel Arteta, they have evolved from a promising partnership into a duo who play total football. It’s an antithesis to the accusations levelled at the manager and his team about style of play and set-piece reliance. And it all stems from the Spaniard’s philosophy across the pitch which is centred on control, not aesthetics.
And control, at its core, begins with the centre backs. In Saliba and Gabriel, Arsenal have the ideal modern centre-back pairing: quality passers, comfortable ball-carriers, good at set-pieces in both boxes.
Across all competitions this season, they have a combined total of five goals and six assists. This includes Gabriel’s towering stoppage-time header against Newcastle in September which secured a vital win early into the season, and Saliba’s finish against Chelsea this month, set up by Gabriel from the back post.
Arsenal have arguably Europe’s most complete centre-back pairing. Gabriel (left) and William Saliba do it all – and to a remarkable level, too
What truly separates them from traditional centre-back pairings, though, is not goals and assists but distribution. It stems from their comfort in stepping into midfield
What truly separates them from traditional centre-back pairings, though, is not goals and assists but distribution. It stems from their comfort in stepping into midfield.
Saliba has made the most completed passes at Arsenal in the league so far (1,519 in 24 matches). That’s more than Declan Rice (1,507 in 29 matches) and Martin Zubimendi (1,442 in 30 matches) despite having played fewer games. Across the league, Saliba is ranked 10th, with Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk No 1 on 1,976.
The Frenchman has also made 533 passes in the opposition half, with Gabriel having made 488, which ranks the pair fourth and fifth respectively at Arsenal. Only Rice, Zubimendi and Jurrien Timber have made more such passes. The pair are both in the top 15 for passes made by defenders at any club this season.
The Arsenal duo’s ability on the ball has come to the fore on multiple occasions this season and become a key feature. Saliba was impressive in his distribution against Tottenham last month, looking to bypass the midfield with cutting through balls into the likes of Eberechi Eze and Leandro Trossard.
Similarly, against Chelsea on March 1, Gabriel played a number of long passes both across the floor and aerially into the path of Viktor Gyokeres.
It’s even more noticeable in the Champions League where Arsenal’s opponents have often been more attacking and left spaces to exploit.
On the Arsenal training ground, this ploy has been well-drilled. There is an awareness that with opponents dropping so deep this season, their centre backs getting involved in build-up play is essential.
Coach Gabriel Heinze has been a major influence. It’s understood that the Argentine, who replaced outgoing assistant coach Carlos Cuesta last summer, has been tasked with instilling a winning mentality into the backline having won the Premier League with Manchester United and La Liga at Real Madrid.
Saliba was impressive with his distribution against Tottenham last month, looking to bypass the midfield with through-balls into the likes of Eberechi Eze and Leandro Trossard
Gabriel often looks to be more direct, regularly playing long balls into Arsenal’s striker Viktor Gyokeres (centre) for example
He has also been working with the centre backs on ball-playing, using his playing experience of sharing a pitch with Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Fabio Cannavaro. Saliba, for instance, has spent more and more time on the ball in the last two months, in a bid to draw teams further up the pitch.
Still, the two Arsenal defenders are different in that one looks to dribble more than the other. When Saliba glides forward, it forces a midfield rotation which destabilises the opposition’s shape. Those few yards of shape-shifting create the half-second that Eze or Bukayo Saka need. Gabriel, on other hand, is constantly looking for long passes through central corridors, or will draw a midfielder in before releasing at the moment of engagement.
Opponents who once pressed aggressively now hesitate. Press too hard and Saliba will carry past you. Sit off and Gabriel will thread through you. It has become a quiet form of territorial dominance, and matters because Arsenal’s positional structure often leaves the centre backs as the free men in the early build-up play.
For their wide players, particularly Saka, opponents often place two players on them which grants Saliba and Gabriel further avenues to make in-roads.
What makes the pair even more striking is how distinct they are from most centre backs across both the Premier League and in Europe. In England, the traditional centre-half still leans heavily towards physical dominance, less on ball-playing. Across Europe, meanwhile, centre backs are often more technically expressive but rely on deeper defensive blocks so have less need to defend large spaces behind them.
Arsenal’s pair do not have that luxury. Arteta’s aggressive approach often leaves them defending vast areas in transition, particularly when the full backs invert and the midfield pushes high.
Saliba’s composure when carrying into midfield resembles that of a deep-lying playmaker more than a conventional defender, while Gabriel combines physical aggression with a willingness to attempt ambitious vertical passes that many centre backs would avoid.
Of course, this comes with risk. Saliba’s occasional lapse in concentration, like his misplaced pass that put Zubimendi under pressure and led to Manchester United’s opener in their 3-2 win at the Emirates in January, highlights the fine line he walks.
Saliba celebrates scoring his team’s first goal against Chelsea this month with Gabriel, who provided the assist
Saliba and Gabriel are not simply solid defenders in a good team, they are the structural pillars of a well-constructed side
Similarly, Gabriel has made mistakes, most notably against Bournemouth, where a poor pass was intercepted by goalscorer Evanilson. These instances underline that even the best centre backs must sometimes pay a price for their proactive style.
But the overall result is a pairing that blends the Premier League’s physical demands with its technical expectations. Few teams possess a defender capable of doing both roles; Arsenal have two.
As the Gunners continue their Quadruple quest, the spotlight often falls on the fluidity of the frontline or the dynamism of their midfield. Yet the foundation is behind them. Saliba and Gabriel are not simply solid defenders in a good team, they are the structural pillars of a well-constructed side.
Modern centre backs must do everything. At Arsenal, they do.
