Arsenal have confirmed the signing of defender Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille on a long-term contract.

This was made known on Arsenal’s website in a press statement where the club said the 22-year-old Brazilian would wear our number 6 shirt.

The newly signed player whose full name is Gabriel dos Santos Magalhaes, started his career in Brazil with Avai FC, before joining Lille in January 2017. During his time in France, he spent time on loan with Troyes in France and latterly in Croatia with Dinamo Zagreb. After returning from his loan spells, the Sao Paulo-born defender became a regular in the Lille side and helped them to secure a fourth-placed Ligue 1 finish last season, starting all six of their Champions League group-stage matches.

In the words of the Technical Director of Arsenal, Edu, he said, “We are delighted to have signed Gabriel. He is a player we have been studying for a while and he was in demand from many clubs, so we are proud to have agreed and completed this transfer with Lille and the player. Gabriel is a player of high quality and Mikel and his coaches are looking forward to integrating him into the club.”

In addition, Mikel Arteta said, “We welcome Gabriel to Arsenal. He has many qualities which will make us stronger as a defensive unit and as a team. He has proved with Lille that he is a defender with many outstanding attributes and we are looking forward to watching him grow as an Arsenal player.”