The first leap

By 2026, few centre-backs will inspire as much confidence in their teammates and strike as much fear into their opponents as Arsenal’s Gabriel Magalhães.

At 28, the Brazilian giant has become a key figure in Mikel Arteta’s defence, forming, alongside Frenchman William Saliba, one of the Premier League’s strongest and most imposing centre-back partnerships.

It was also thanks to Gabriel’s solidity that Arsenal managed to achieve what had seemed impossible at the start of the year: lifting the league trophy after a 22-year wait.

It is curious to think that a player so well known for his steadfastness – practically impossible to dislodge, a veritable wall in defence – has also built his career by taking risky decisions. There is an interesting contrast between the confidence he exudes on the pitch and the leaps of faith he has had to take throughout his life.

But Gabriel would not be the player we know today without those leaps of faith. It was they, after all, that forced him to step out of his comfort zone, to believe in himself when there were still no guarantees that it would work out. In a way, it was precisely these bold choices that helped transform him into the symbol of solidity he is today.

His story is, in many ways, a collection of moments when he could have given up – but chose to press on.

Let’s look back at some of those moments of courage, when Gabriel decided to believe in himself and take risks that could change the course of his life and career.

The courage to step out of his comfort zone

Gabriel was born in Pirituba, in the north of São Paulo. He and his three brothers grew up with limited means, but his parents worked tirelessly to give their children the best life possible, whilst his grandparents helped look after the children at home.

Gabriel was always tall for his age. His mother, Márcia, recalls that when he went through his growth spurt, he could barely fit into the small house where the family lived.

And as his body grew, so did a dream: to become a footballer.

Gabriel spent much of his days playing football, whilst his father, Marcelo, made a point of taking him to training sessions at local youth clubs.

It wasn’t just the dream of a child who loved playing football. It was also a silent promise that, one day, he might be able to repay his parents for everything they’d done for him.

But the road ahead would not be an easy one for such a young teenager.

At the age of 13, he travelled nearly 800 km to Florianópolis, in Santa Catarina, to have a trial with Avaí. Knowing he didn’t have the money to stay in the city for long, Gabriel decided to make the most of the opportunity and leave the best possible impression.

It was a long journey for such a young boy. Without realising it, Gabriel was about to take the first of many great leaps of faith in his life.

At Avaí, it didn’t take him long to catch the eye. Right from his very first training session, the lad showed he had something special.

Gabriel had been tried out in various positions since he was a child – from striker to central midfielder and full-back. At Avaí, however, the coaches decided to play him in defence, mainly because of his physical stature and his unusual combination of strength and agility.

Niltinho Costa, the club’s youth team coach at the time, recalls that Gabriel still had a lot of room for improvement. He was quite shy, struggled a bit in one-on-one situations, wasn’t great in the air and, being almost a year younger than most of the lads in the youth squad, still needed to build up his physical strength to be able to compete on equal terms.

Even so, those few days were enough to convince Avaí that he was worth taking a chance on. Gabriel was not just a promising and versatile player. He also knew how to listen, accepted criticism and was always keen to learn: “He wasn’t built on talent, but on the desire to improve on his weaknesses.” (The Guardian)

Avaí could see Gabriel’s potential. But for the 13-year-old, those first few days at the club had another effect: they made him start to think that perhaps he wasn’t quite ready for that challenge yet.

The first big decision

It was the first time Gabriel had been away from his family, and he was struck by a strong sense of homesickness. He was scared and felt alone. On the fourth day of the trial, he rang his dad and asked him to come and collect him and take him back home: “My dad came to collect me, and when I saw him after those four days away, I cried like a baby. Well, I was still a child, wasn’t I?” (Isabela Pagliari – YouTube)

Too embarrassed to tell the club the real reason he wanted to go back, Gabriel said he needed to fetch some more clothes from home. Southern Brazil was colder than he’d expected, he explained, and he needed more warm clothes.

At that moment, Gabriel had no intention of returning.

For a few moments, his dream seemed insignificant compared to his homesickness.

Until the coach at the youth academy where he trained – the very same person who’d taken him to that trial at Avaí – rang his father. The club were looking for Gabriel. The trial had gone well. He’d been accepted and would have a chance at Avaí.

His father told him the news and, as always, made it clear that he would support whatever decision his son made. But he also made Gabriel think: if he turned down the opportunity, he would have to help him with his work, accompanying him in the van that delivered meals to schools.

Gabriel thought long and hard.

He thought of all the lads who would give anything to have an opportunity like that.

He thought of his father, who came home tired from work every day and yet still found the energy to take him to training. Sometimes, he even took time off work to be able to accompany his son.

Perhaps, at that moment, Gabriel realised that this opportunity wasn’t just about him. There was a whole family behind that dream.

Gabriel took a deep breath.

It was time to be brave.

A few days later, he returned the call from Avaí and went back to Florianópolis.

The boy who’d asked to leave was now coming back of his own accord.

This time, he arrived determined to prove he was ready. Gabriel immediately set to work on the areas the coaches had identified as his main weaknesses.

One of the most important lessons Niltinho Costa taught him at that time was precisely to be tough: “I knew there was no chance of him becoming a good centre-back if he was fragile, or even if anyone thought he was fragile. I told him: ‘Gabriel, you need to be more physical. You need to get in close to these lads and you can’t let them get past you.’” (The Guardian)

And that is exactly what Gabriel did. By making strength one of the hallmarks of his game, he continued to develop and establish himself as one of the country’s most promising young centre-backs.

The difficulties that almost made him give up

But learning to be strong didn’t mean Gabriel would never face moments when he felt weak.

In his second year at Avaí, Gabriel went through a very difficult time. One of his closest childhood friends died in a car crash. Devastated, the young defender couldn’t think straight or concentrate and, once again, even considered giving it all up and going home.

Niltinho was no longer the club’s youth team coach, but he made a point of phoning Gabriel to encourage him not to give up on football.

Fortunately, this was yet another piece of advice that the young centre-back took to heart.

Once again, Gabriel had to be brave.

He wiped away his tears and carried on.

And this time, he didn’t look back – he ended up staying at Avaí for several years.

At 16, he signed his first professional contract.

At 18, he helped the club secure promotion to the top flight of Brazilian football and, shortly afterwards, was even named captain.

Whilst still at Avaí, he received his first call-up to the Brazilian youth team – a significant achievement, particularly as the club is not among the country’s biggest and the top talents in the youth ranks usually emerge from the academies of giants such as Palmeiras, Corinthians, Flamengo and São Paulo.

Gabriel continued to make history for Avaí.

In January 2017, he became the club’s most expensive ever sale when he was transferred to Lille, in France, for around 3 million euros.

At the age of 19, that young lad who had cried after just four days away from home was now leaving Brazil to start a new life on the other side of the Atlantic.

Gabriel knew the weight of that decision – not just for his career, but also for Avaí and, above all, for his family. That is why he accepted Lille’s offer and set off for France.

Once again, it was time to take the leap.

The leap to Europe

The change was huge and daunting. And it was made even more difficult by the fact that Gabriel didn’t speak a single word of French.

When he arrived at Lille, there were no other Brazilians in the squad, but two Portuguese players, Éder and Rony Lopes, helped the young centre-back settle into his new surroundings.

This settling-in period, however, was brought to an abrupt halt. In his very first season, Lille’s then manager, Marcelo Bielsa, decided to loan the new signing to Troyes, also in Ligue 1.

And, unlike Lille, Troyes had no Portuguese-speaking players in their squad at the time.

Suddenly, the leap to Europe seemed even greater.

Overnight, Gabriel had to adapt to a new team and a new city, in a foreign country, whilst trying to teach himself a language he knew nothing about.

Over the course of his three years at Lille, including periods on loan at other clubs, Gabriel not only learnt French but also managed to become a key player in the team.

But this didn’t happen overnight. After his loan spell at Troyes, another followed, this time to Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia. During both spells, Gabriel struggled to get playing time and didn’t receive the opportunity at Lille that he had been so eagerly awaiting.

That feeling he’d experienced at the age of 13 returned: what if the opportunity never came?

At times, he even thought it would never come.

Just as had happened in his teenage years, Gabriel found himself wondering once again whether all that effort was really worth it: “I went back to Lille, but I wasn’t playing. I like to compete. A footballer wants to be playing. At that moment, I thought it might all go wrong. I’d come home and say to my dad: ‘Let’s go back to Brazil. At least there we’ll be close to our family.’” (Globo GShow)

With that in mind, Gabriel approached the club’s director in February 2019 and told him he wanted to leave. The manager wasn’t giving him any opportunities, and he didn’t want to keep waiting for a chance that seemed never to come.

But, as fate would have it, everything was about to change the very next day.

Gabriel didn’t know it yet, but he was just one match away from the opportunity that could change his career.

The opportunity that finally arrived

In the match against Rennes in the French Cup, one of Lille’s first-choice centre-backs, Adama Soumaoro, was sent off in the 19th minute. Even so, Gabriel was once again left on the bench. The then manager, Christophe Galtier, preferred to pair Kouadio-Yves Dabila with regular starter José Fonte.

Dabila put in a poor performance, and Lille ended up losing the match.

For the next league match against Guingamp, Galtier had no other choice.

Gabriel finally started, alongside Fonte.

After so many loan spells, so many time on the bench and so many moments when he thought about returning home, his turn had finally come.

He hadn’t given up. And at last, he was given the opportunity he’d fought so hard for.

There was no way he was going to let it slip away.

The Brazilian played the full 90 minutes, put in an impressive defensive display and helped Lille to a 2–0 win.

From then on, Gabriel came to be seen as a reliable option for a starting place in defence.

And then came the match that would turn an opportunity into a breakthrough.

But it was in a historic thrashing of the then league leaders, Paris Saint-Germain, that he truly cemented his place.

PSG had a squad packed with stars such as Kylian Mbappé, Ángel Di María and Thiago Silva.

Gabriel started on the bench, and the teams went into half-time level at 1–1.

In the second half, the Brazilian came on – and the match changed completely.

Lille ran riot against PSG and ended up winning 5–1. Gabriel not only helped to contain the powerful Parisian attack, but also scored the team’s fourth goal that night.

And, as if history were coming full circle, the goal came from a header.

“He is a role model for young players to follow.” – Christophe Galtier

It was one of the areas that Niltinho Costa had identified as something Gabriel needed to improve whilst still at Avaí. The goal was a perfect illustration of the centre-back’s development and his constant desire to improve. Over time, headed goals would become one of his trademarks.

What had once been a weakness was now one of his greatest strengths.

Galtier also made a point of praising Gabriel’s dedication and determination: “He managed to make the most of the first opportunity he was given. He was hungry to play, and whilst waiting for his turn, he worked incredibly hard. He is a role model for young players to follow.” (The Guardian)

His move to Arsenal in 2020 was another example of Gabriel finally reaping the rewards of all that hard work and his tireless desire to learn and improve.

The choice of Arsenal

At the time, the centre-back had other offers, notably from Everton and Napoli. Lille’s board would have preferred him to choose Napoli, as they were the club willing to pay the most for his signing.

But Mikel Arteta had presented Gabriel with a different vision. In a conversation with the Brazilian, he explained his project and made it clear that he saw him as a central figure in his plans to take Arsenal back to the top of the Premier League.

Gabriel saw an exciting future in that conversation: that of being a key player in a well-organised team, someone truly important to the project.

The then chairman of Lille recognised all the effort Gabriel had put in during his time at the club. Even when he was on the bench or out on loan, the Brazilian continued to work hard and push himself to the limit.

For this reason, despite the club’s interest in Napoli’s offer, he decided to leave the choice in the player’s own hands.

Gabriel chose Arsenal.

Of course, it helped that the Gunners had, at the time of his arrival, several Portuguese-speaking players in their squad, such as David Luiz, Willian, Gabriel Martinelli, Cédric Soares and Pablo Marí.

But another important reason why Gabriel settled in so well at the north London club was his own efforts to learn French whilst playing in Ligue 1. Although he wasn’t perfectly fluent, he was able to communicate and understand others, and he cites this as one of the main reasons why he felt so quickly welcomed by the Arsenal family: “After a year in France, I could already speak French. Not perfectly, but I could manage. And there were lots of French players when I arrived at Arsenal. That was good. I’d played with Nicolas Pépé for a long time at Lille, and when I arrived at Arsenal he was here. He told me to come. When I arrived, I also made friends very quickly with Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Matteo Guéndouzi. And Arteta spoke a bit of French too, because he’d played for Paris Saint-Germain.” (Isabela Pagliari – YouTube)

This effort to learn French was also key to building his professional relationship and friendship with William Saliba, who established himself as a first-choice centre-back for Arsenal in 2022. The two often chat in French and, together, have become one of the strongest defensive partnerships in European football.

But Gabriel had already learnt that adapting was only the beginning. He needed to keep developing.

At Arteta’s request, he also set about learning English when he arrived in London. Today, he can communicate easily with all his team-mates.

From rising star to Arsenal mainstay

When he joined Arsenal in 2020, the club was going through a difficult and turbulent period. The team had finished the previous season in a disappointing 8th place and had not won a title since 2017.

In the years that followed, however, the story changed. With Arteta at the helm and Gabriel as one of the mainstays of the defence, Arsenal have transformed into one of the strongest and most competitive teams not only in England, but also in Europe and the world.

By September 2026, Gabriel had made almost 200 appearances for the club and scored 20 goals, becoming one of the most experienced and reliable leaders in the squad.

With Arsenal, he has already won two Community Shields and, in 2026, finally lifted the long-awaited Premier League trophy. The Brazilian was also named in the league’s Team of the Season, finishing among the players with the most blocks (34) and the highest percentage of duels won in the league (70 per cent).

In the Champions League, he also made the Team of the Season after helping Arsenal reach the final, where the team were eventually defeated by Luis Enrique’s impressive PSG side.

The centre-back, who was one of Carlo Ancelotti’s first-choice defenders for Brazil at the 2026 World Cup, was rewarded for his efforts with his first nomination for the ‘Ballon d'Or’.

That boy from Pirituba who once cried because he couldn’t bear to be away from his parents for four days was now among the biggest names in world football.

None of this happened by chance.

Strength built on courage

Every block, every tackle, every headed goal and every night wearing the Arsenal shirt carries a little of the resolve that has brought him this far.

It is all the result of Gabriel’s hard work – his refusal to give up, his constant drive to improve, and his ability to ensure that doubts and difficult moments did not get the better of him.

“I’m glad to know that I’m reaping the rewards of the things I gave up.” – Gabriel Magalhães

When he felt afraid, he came back. When he thought of giving up, he carried on. When one door closed, he waited for the next one. And when it finally opened, he was ready to walk through it.

The centre-back himself acknowledges just how much he has changed over the years: “I’m really pleased with how I’ve developed, both mentally and physically. I’m glad to know that I’m reaping the rewards of the things I gave up.” (ESPN)

We still don’t know how much Gabriel will reap in the coming years. But perhaps that is precisely the most beautiful part of his story: he never needed to know exactly where each leap would take him.

With every step, he left behind a version of himself – more shy, more insecure, less prepared – and built a new one.

Today, the man who seems impossible to bring down is proof that, sometimes, strength does not come from the absence of fear. It comes from the courage to carry on in spite of it.