Gabriel Magalhães #3

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Now one of the world’s best centre-backs, Gabriel had a stuttering start to life in football. As a young teenager he left his São Paulo home to join Avaí’s academy, but returned after a week with homesickness. After speaking to his father, Gabriel called Avaí coach Diogo Fernandes who agreed to have him back. “We knew this could happen as the first problem a footballer faces is being far away from their family,” Diogo said in 2020. “We also knew that Avaí would be one of the few clubs that would accept Gabriel. He was skinny and very tall, a left-footer, but he was a bit soft in challenges and couldn’t head the ball too well. We were right in the end, though: he was the biggest transfer in Avaí history [when sold to Lille in 2017] and a superb player … He wasn’t built by talent, but by his will to improve his shortcomings and learn that he could surpass any difficulties life throws at him. We knew he could be a top player from the start.” After three years in France, he joined Arsenal for £27m. Known at the Emirates as Big Gabi, to avoid confusion with namesake Martinelli.

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