It wasn't the best of nights for Arsenal on Tuesday, as they were held to a 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
Mikel Arteta's usually impeccable defensive unit looked out at sea for much of the evening, but with limited options on the bench, there was little he could do.
William Saliba was the man who gave away the penalty in the first half, but Gabriel Magalhães was just as poor, and based on reports from earlier this week, he could soon have some competition to worry about.
Arsenal on the hunt for a new defender
According to a report from TEAMtalk earlier this week, Arsenal has been given a massive boost in their pursuit of Sporting CP centre-back Ousmane Diomande, one that puts them in pole position to secure his signature ahead of cross-city Chelsea.
The report has revealed that the highly rated 20-year-old has made a transfer to the Gunners his 'preferred move' over the Blues this summer. This has now put the north Londoners in the 'driver's seat' for any potential deal once the window opens.
Therefore, the most significant obstacle left to secure the defender's services this year is his release clause, which is priced at around £69m, and while that is undeniably expensive, it isn't out of reach for Arsenal, as they demonstrated last year.
While this development has probably gone down exceptionally well with Arteta and Edu Gaspar, it might not be such great news for Gabriel, as his place in the starting lineup would suddenly look a lot less secure.
How Ousmane Diomande compares to Gabriel Magalhães
So, the first thing to say is that there are two reasons that Gabriel would be the defender at risk if Diomande joined the club.
First, he plays as the left-sided centre-back in the team, which would likely be the favoured position for the left-footed Sporting man. Second, the fact that he was left out of the starting lineup at the start of this season suggests that while Arteta rates the Brazilian, he doesn't view him as an indispensable part of the team.
That said, how do the pairs' underlying numbers stack up against one another? Is there a clear winner in that metric? Well, unfortunately for the Arsenal man, the Ivorian comes out ahead here, and by quite some way in specific statistics.
Progressive Passes
5.23
3.68
Progressive Carries
0.97
0.48
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.08
0.17
Passing Accuracy
91.6%
88.4%
Shot-Creating Actions
1.18
0.74
Goal-Creating Actions
0.10
0.07
Tackles Won
0.97
0.77
Blocks
0.36
1.40
Tackle + Interceptions
2.31
2.28
Clearances
1.79
2.90
Ball Recoveries
6.05
4.08
For example, the "incredibly complete" defender, as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, produces more progressive passes, progressive carries, shot-creating actions, and goal-creating actions, wins more tackles, and makes more ball recoveries per 90.
This ability to create chances as well as defend marries well with Kulig's description of the Sporting star as someone who possesses "high ball-playing and pure defender skills."
In his defence, the former LOSC Lille star does make more blocks and clearances per 90 than his potential competition, but those two areas of strength do not outweigh his relative weaknesses.
Ultimately, if Arteta and Edu can get this deal over the line in the summer, they absolutely should, and while it may hurt Gabriel's game time, it could also strengthen the squad.
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