Arsenal defenders William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes have now agreed on who the most skilful player in the Premier League is.
As Arsenal’s centre-back duo, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes have come up against many elite-level attackers in the Premier League.
Against Manchester City on Sunday, though, the pair are in agreement that they came up against the trickiest forward in the division.
In the face of this challenge, though, the Gunners stood firm. Mikel Arteta brought his side to the Etihad Stadium with a conservative game-plan and the north London club’s diligent defensive effort earned them a 0-0 draw and a valuable Premier League point.
Arsenal have now achieved a Premier League first this season by going unbeaten home and away against both Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side and Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
At the heart of the Arsenal rearguard, Saliba produced an utterly dominant display against the reigning champions.
Arsenal boosted by presence of William Saliba v Man City
The 23-year-old’s performance was a reminder of how sorely he was missed in this same fixture last season.
Last season, Arsenal travelled to face Manchester City during the run-in and their hopes of winning the Premier League title were decimated that day as the Cityzens put them to the sword, running out 4-1 winners.
The French centre-back was sidelined with injury for that match. He was fit to face Manchester City this time around, though, and his presence made all the difference as Arsenal earned a Premier League point at the Etihad Stadium for the first time since 2016.
After the final whistle on Sunday, Arsenal club captain Martin Odegaard hailed the “brilliant” Saliba for his performance in the match and rued his absence in the previous campaign.
William Saliba names most skilful Manchester City star
Saliba’s display was all the more impressive considering he came up against the player he considers to be the most skilful in the top flight of English football.
In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Saliba and Gabriel were asked who the most skilful Premier League player is. The pair were in agreement as they both named Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku.
Saliba then added, “he’s the best, one against one.”
The £55 million wide man came on as a second half substitute on Sunday, but even with his fresh legs and abundance of flair, he could make no impact against the Gunners or overcome their resistance.
As for the most skilful player in the Arsenal squad, Gabriel and Saliba nominated Gabriel Martinelli.