Nearly two weeks ago, Arsenal’s hopes of winning the Premier League seemed to have been thwarted.
The Gunners were, and remain, the team to beat in England’s top flight this season. However, things looked pretty grim for Mikel Arteta’s side after they drew 1-1 with Brentford and then surrendered a two-goal advantage over Wolves to drop points at Molineux.
But they bounced back admirably, beating Spurs eight days ago and Chelsea on Sunday in pretty ugly fashion.
Their title bid may be back on track, but the season is at a critical juncture and they need more work from their senior players, who are starting to make some mistakes.
Is Declan Rice running out of gas?
One of the biggest strengths of this Arsenal team is the team’s consistency. This is one of the main reasons why they have been able to take on Manchester City and Liverpool so well over the past three seasons, despite not winning the biggest prize.
They currently have arguably the best defense in Europe, but the cracks in their armor are starting to show. They have kept just two clean sheets in their last six games.
The worst moment of the season was the 2-2 draw with Wolves, when two of the team’s most consistent players, Gabriel Magalhães and David Raya, made fatal mistakes. Both players competed for the ball, and possession fell to Wolves.
Declan Rice, the club’s record signing, has also been off a bit of form recently. The midfielder has been in pole position for much of the season and won the PFA Player of the Season award, but his performance last week left something to be desired.
Arsenal’s most expensive contract in history
The Gunners have spent generously in recent years.
In fact, Randall Kolo Muani’s equalizing goal against Spurs was a midfielder’s mistake. He was probably lucky that he didn’t give away a penalty against Chelsea when the ball hit him in the arm from a corner. Luckily for the Gunners, that wasn’t given.
This isn’t the only troubling moment for Rice recently. He provided the assist for Julian Timber’s winning goal on Sunday, but his passing was more erratic than usual against the Blues, with one notable moment when he passed the ball directly into the corner from outside the play as he tried to find Raya.
Rice wasn’t terrible against Chelsea either, but let’s set the record straight on that. He wasn’t poor at all. But the England star is usually so impressive that it’s obvious when he’s not at his best.
Arsenal star outclasses Rice
The midfielder could win the Player of the Year award even if Arsenal emerge victorious in their pursuit of Premier League glory. But for now, he’s narrowly beaten by some of his teammates.
In fact, Eberechi Eze and Victor Gokeres were the heroes against Spurs just a week ago, combining effortlessly to score two goals each in the 4-1 thrashing.
Meanwhile, it was Timber and William Saliba who came to the rescue in last weekend’s game against Chelsea. Saliba, in particular, has been solid in recent weeks, firmly reminding everyone why he is one of the best defenders in world football.
When Saliba first joined the Arsenal team, he looked like a Rolls Royce. The Frenchman is the epitome of calm, but has undoubtedly been overshadowed by Gabriel throughout the last few seasons.
Together they form the best defensive partnership in the country, and perhaps in Europe, but it is the louder, more abusive Gabriel who has garnered the most praise.
The Brazilian has been a monster with three goals and four assists in all competitions this season. But, as he showed against Chelsea, it’s only natural that Saliba should be given flowers as well.
The £27m France international hasn’t scored a goal this season but featured in key moments against Liam Rosenior’s side. Usually Gabriel was still involved. The big centre-back rose highest near the back post, headed the ball into the path of his defensive colleague and deflected it into the net from close range.
2025/26 Saliba vs Gabriel | ||
|---|---|---|
Statistics (per 90 minutes) | across | Gabriel |
the goal | 0.1 | 0.2 |
Pass accuracy | 92.57% | 89.33% |
forward pass | 20.3 | 18.6 |
tackle | 1.2 | 1.4 |
Successful aerial duel | 52.94% | 64.71% |
Successful ground duel | 59.46% | 74.65% |
won a duel | 4.5 | 5.9 |
intercept | 0.6 | 0.9 |
It’s not just the defenders’ efforts in the final third that should be praised. He was given the reins by Cole Palmer and did a phenomenal job at the back.
In the early exchanges, Arsenal looked quite confused by Chelsea’s tactical plans. Palmer appeared on the team sheet as a right-winger, but was essentially given a free role to play wherever he wanted.
However, it was Saliba who negated that threat, regularly stepping into the midfield to chase down the away team’s key players. It had the great effect of preventing the 24-year-old Palmer from making any key passes or successful dribbles.
His importance to the team cannot be underestimated, with some prior interest from Real Madrid and him being valued at £100m. That price tag means he is currently the most valuable player on the team. Yes, he’s more valuable than Gabriel, more valuable than Rice, more valuable than star boy Bukayo Saka.
In fact, Saka is currently valued at £90m, while Rice is valued at £94m, according to Football Transfers’ expected transfer model.
The fact that Saliba’s value has increased further speaks volumes about how good he has been since first arriving under Edu’s management in July 2019.
Better than Gabriel and Rice: £27m Arsenal star now the best in the world
Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 on Sunday and signed him for £27m as a thank you.
