Huge push from Juventus to sign Gabriel as decisive factor leaves Arsenal fearful of unwanted sale

Arsenal may find themselves backed into a corner over the future of Gabriel Magalhaes with Juventus reportedly confident of striking a deal for the defender.

The Brazilian defender has enjoyed an excellent season on a personal level with the Gunners. Arriving in September 2020 for a fee which could top £27m, Gabriel has now established himself as one of the first names on the teamsheet. Playing alongside Ben White in the heart of defence, Gabriel has played 38 times in all competitions this season.

However, interest in the player from Juventus has come to the surface in recent weeks. They are in the market for a dominant new central defender with Giorgio Chiellini leaving at the end of the season.

And it seems they are reportedly willing to go as high as £50m in a bid to convince Arsenal to sell.

Now, as per the Daily Mirror, Arsenal are well aware of that interest and are considering offering him a new deal to convince him to stay. However, Juventus are refusing to take no for an answer.

Furthermore, it’s reported that Juve are growing increasingly confident of securing his signature. With Champions League football on offer, they ‘believe’ – as their headline states – they can prise him away from the Gunners.

His loss would be an enormous loss to Mikel Arteta, who is a big fan of the player.

“I think he has grown so much, especially as a character,” he said recently of Gabriel.

“Obviously his English is better, the way he is presenting himself, the respect that he earned around the boys.

Gabriel has a huge fan in Arteta

“Those performances have been really consistent throughout the season, defending and now scoring really important goals for us, which is an add on that you hope to have in your centre defenders but it’s easy to find.”

The Bianconeri are looking to rebuild their squad after falling behind Inter and AC Milan in the Serie A standings.

They are also on the brink of securing the signing of Paul Pogba. He is likely to return to Juventus on a free transfer, following six seasons at Old Trafford.

His signing will allow Juventus to move on Weston McKennie, while Paulo Dybala is also leaving as a free agent. They also hope to sell off Aaron Ramsey, though a permanent move to loan club Rangers appears unlikely.

Arteta has a ready-made replacement if sale goes through

Arteta will obviously fight hard to keep Gabriel at Arsenal and it may well take a new deal to convince him to stay. To that end, we’ve seen players use transfer speculation to better their existing deals.

However, Juventus are seemingly very intent on getting that done. And a defensive partnership of Gabriel and Matthijs de Ligt would see Juventus fixed in that area for a number of years yet.

That said, Arsenal are under no pressure to sell, and it may come down to the player to force the issue if he wants the move.

The Gunners may have missed the Champions League this season and Gabriel may be wondering if they will ever have a better chance.

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Should Arsenal sell, then they will expect a fee of around £50m. That would see their initial investment doubled. It would also give Arsenal far more financial power when it comes to bringing in a new forward.

And should Gabriel depart, Arsenal know they have a ready-made replacement in William Saliba.

The France defender has excelled during a year on loan with Marseille. Our exclusive recently claimed he was ready to return to Arsenal and fight for his place in the side.

Arsenal are also reportedly tracking Manuel Akanji. The Swiss star will seemingly leave Borussia Dortmund this summer for a bargain fee.