It has been claimed that a star free agent opened talks to join Arsenal over the weekend, all while Mikel Arteta was preparing for the North London derby.
Arteta praises Arsenal after 1-0 win away to Tottenham
Derby bragging rights returned to the Emirates Stadium once again on Sunday, with Arsenal sealing a 1-0 victory away to Tottenham courtesy of defender Gabriel Magalhaes’ only goal of the game.
The home side dominated possession and created a fair few openings, but Ange Postecoglou’s men were ultimately fruitless in their attempts to break down a resolute Arsenal team who were without Declan Rice, Mikel Merino, Riccardo Calafiori, Martin Odegaard and Oleksandr Zinchenko for the encounter.
Arsenal then exploited Spurs’ weakness in dealing with set pieces on 64 minutes, as Gabriel leaped the highest to head in a corner from close range, leaving the helpless Guglielmo Vicario stranded just outside his six-yard box.
Most goals by PL centre-backs since Gabriel’s debut | |
|---|---|
Player | Goal tally |
1. Gabriel | 15 |
2. Kurt Zouma | 11 |
3. Lewis Dunk | 10 |
4. Ben Mee | 10 |
5. Virgil van Dijk | 9 |
6. Michael Keane | 9 |
7. Fabin Schar | 9 |
8. John Stones | 8 |
Data via BBC Sport. | |
It was a crucial, hard-fought Premier League victory for the Gunners – who were forced to showcase resolute defending on a pretty tight afternoon at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Arsenal also broke a record with their win over Spurs, having sealed three consecutive victories away to their rivals for the first time in 35 years.
“Loving the game means that you are able to do things regardless of context,” said a delighted Arteta on Arsenal’s win at Tottenham.
“Jorginho, he loves the game. He doesn’t play it, but he loves winning. I mean, when he’s not playing, he’s training like an animal at his age, after winning everything. So when you ask him to play 90 minutes, like he hasn’t played probably for the last five months, he’s able, even cramping everywhere, managed to do it.
“The same with Jurrien, he’s been a year out, he hasn’t played 90 minutes at all, and he was struggling today, but he managed to do it for the team. And like, all these guys, I don’t know without a pre-season, I don’t know how many minutes he’s played. And he was unbelievable, all of them, but that’s the spirit and the characters that we have, that I love.”
According to The Boot Room and journalist Graeme Bailey, while Arsenal were preparing for the clash, they were approached by ex-Juventus and PSG midfielder Adrien Rabiot over joining them on a free deal.
Adrien Rabiot held talks to join Arsenal in the last few days
According to their information, Rabiot opened talks to join Arsenal over the weekend, via his representatives. Arteta’s side were apparently contacted and offered the chance to strike a Bosman deal for Rabiot, but the France international has now joined Ligue 1 giants Marseille instead, with Roberto De Zerbi’s side agreeing a move.
Rabiot has agreed a £162,000-per-week contract with Marseille, according to reports, with the 29-year-old finally securing a new home after leaving Juve at the end of his contract. Time will tell whether sporting director Edu Gaspar and the club’s recruitment team regret passing up the chance to sign Rabiot, but those costly wages would’ve immediately put him among Arsenal’s top ten highest-paid players.
