Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger has claimed that Arsenal pair William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes are among the best three defenders in the world right now.
There is always a debate in football over which player is the best in their positional category. And while so much attention always seems to be on attack-minded players, every now and then a more defensive footballer rises to the fore. In 2024, for instance, Manchester City holding midfielder Rodri is now one of the favourites to win the Ballon d’Or.
German centre-back Rudiger is also among the list of nominees for this year’s award. While not expected to win – Franz Beckenbauer and Fabio Cannavaro are the only defenders to have claimed the prize – it’s a clear sign of the 31-year-old’s quality that he has made the final 30. With that in mind, when it comes to ranking his fellow modern central defenders, his opinion is pretty valuable and he seems to have been blown away by Saliba and Gabriel.
Rudiger Praises Saliba and Gabriel
“They’re doing an amazing job”
Speaking recently on The Inside Scoop podcast, Rudiger was asked to give his thoughts on the best three defenders in the world. In no particular order, he named Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk as an undoubted member of that club.
He then took the opportunity to lavish praise on Arsenal duo Saliba and Gabriel, explaining how they have been pivotal to Arsenal’s ‘transformation’ in recent seasons. He said:
“Saliba, and I like Gabriel from Arsenal as well.
“If you see Arsenal, like the two centre-backs who are playing together, they are doing since two years now, they’re doing an amazing job.
“Like the transformation from Arsenal, that was a bit before and now, and those two are the pillar of it. You have with Gabriel the more aggressive leader and for example Saliba is, this brother plays clean. No, really, you have to give it to him. You know, he looks like a silent leader.”
Interestingly enough, there has been talk that Real Madrid could try and sign Saliba in the summer of 2025. On the prospect of one day playing with the Frenchman in La Liga, Rudiger joked: “I am not scaring anybody but at the end of the day, it’s clear, if he keeps doing what he’s doing…”
Saliba and Gabriel Pivotal to Arsenal’s Growth
Only Real Madrid have more clean sheets in 2024
It’s no surprise that the performances of the Arsenal duo have caught the eye, with the emergence of their partnership coinciding with the club’s change from an underperforming outfit to regular Premier League title contenders. At the start of the 2022/23 season, Mikel Arteta trusted Saliba and Gabriel from day one and the club finished second that year, with many believing they could have won the title had the Frenchman not been injured for the final 11 Premier League games of the season.
Once fit again, Saliba came back into the team for the 2023/24 season and Arsenal’s defensive form went up another notch. The Gunners finished the campaign having conceded fewer goals than any other team (29 – with champions Man City letting in 34), as they wracked up a mammoth 89 points but still couldn’t get their hands on the title.
The north London outfit also kept the most clean sheets by a club in the Premier League with 18, as David Raya picked up the Golden Glove largely thanks to the exceptional protection his centre-back paring gave him.
Saliba and Gabriel 2023/24 Premier League stats | ||
|---|---|---|
Stat | Saliba | Gabriel |
Games | 38 | 36 |
Clean Sheets | 18 | 15 |
Goals Conceded | 29 | 26 |
Goals | 2 | 4 |
Wins | 28 | 27 |
Defeats | 5 | 5 |
That quality defensive form has continued into the 2024/25 season, with Arsenal hoping to finally get their hands on a Premier League title. They will also be aiming to go deep into the Champions League and limitted Paris Saint-Germain to their lowest xG output (0.31) in the competition since Opta has been collecting data (69 games), as they recently cruised to a 2-0 win vs their Ligue 1 opposition.
With Saliba and Gabriel at the back, Arteta’s men have now kept 17 clean sheets in 32 games in all competitions in 2024, the most of any Premier League side. In fact, across Europe’s big-five leagues this year, only Real Madrid have kept more (18).
With Rudiger playing a key part in Los Blancos’ defensive success, it makes it all the more meaningful that the Ballon d’Or nominated defender has singled out these two Arsenal stars for praise.
Stats via Transfermarkt and Premier League – correct as of 05/24/24.