Arsenal defender Gabriel says the team are \u201cready for a big battle\u201d as they prepare to face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really good feeling for this club to be in the final against a top team,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have a good feeling and we can\u2019t wait for Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old Brazil international called upon the Arsenal fans to rally in support of the team at Wembley. \u201cWe need to push our fans to be behind us,\u201d he told reporters ahead of Sunday\u2019s match. \u201cIn a game like that, they can help us a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Gabriel, the approach remains unchanged despite the magnitude of the fixture. \u201cWe want to win every game we play,\u201d he said. \u201cWe know it\u2019s going to be a big battle, but we are ready and we\u2019ll try to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gabriel signed for Arsenal from Lille in September 2020, so missed out on their last trophy \u2014 the team lifted the FA Cup at the end of the preceding season. He is determined to give his all to bring silverware back to the Emirates Stadium.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a defender, so I need to bring energy for my teammates and for our fans,\u201d he explained. \u201cI give everything when I\u2019m on the pitch. I try to push everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gabriel said his style has been shaped by studying some of the game\u2019s finest centre-backs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve watched a lot of defenders before,\u201d he explained. \u201cI learn a lot from players like Maldini, Cannavaro, Lucio, Thiago Silva and Marquinhos.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sunday will see him lock horns once again with City striker Erling Haaland \u2014 and Gabriel is relishing the challenge.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2026\/03\/19184849\/GettyImages-2197263808-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n Gabriel and Haaland have duelled in the past (Alex Pantling\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI enjoy every game, every striker,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s my job, so I like to battle. He is a top player, and I think he likes to play against me as well. It\u2019s fun\u2014 we enjoy it.\u201d<\/p>\n Arsenal head into the final having just fallen short of securing major honours in recent seasons, and Gabriel believes those experiences have hardened the squad.<\/p>\n \u201cWe learned a lot in the past. We worked very hard,\u201d he said. \u201cThe last three years we didn\u2019t get it, but I think this year we started well. We are in a good moment. We just need to keep doing what we\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe finished second. We tried. Other teams are top teams too, with good players who have played together for years.\u201d<\/p>\n Gabriel\u2019s commitment was underlined during the first leg of Arsenal\u2019s Champions League round of 16 tie against Bayer Leverkusen, when he blocked a goal-bound shot with his neck.<\/p>\n \u201cI couldn\u2019t breathe after that block, but I try to do my best and give everything for this badge,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n That aggressive style has led team-mates to joke about alternative careers for the centre-back. Martin Odegaard suggested in another life Gabriel could be a UFC fighter; Bukayo Saka believes he could have been a security guard.<\/p>\n Now in one of the best periods of his career, Gabriel is aware of growing recognition but remains grounded. \u201cI think this is my best season,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I don\u2019t listen too much to talk about things like Player of the Year. I need to stay humble and keep doing what I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Set pieces have been a cornerstone of Arsenal\u2019s success this season, and Gabriel\u2019s threat in those situations is unrivalled.<\/p>\n \u201cAttack the ball \u2014 simple!\u201d he said when asked about his success from set pieces. \u201cWhen we have a set piece, I put it in my head: I want to score and help my team.\u201d<\/p>\n Gabriel has earned a reputation for celebrating victories on social media. After the 4-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the north London derby last month, he tagged Spurs striker Richarlison in an Instagram post, holding up a four of hearts playing card.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember things \u2014 that\u2019s why,\u201d he said. \u201cFootball is beautiful because what they do, we can do as well.<\/p>\n \u201cLike Richarlison, he\u2019s my friend. When we lost against them in pre-season, they posted a picture. And now we see it in the Premier League.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s in my mind \u2014 I don\u2019t forget. But it\u2019s nothing personal.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Arsenal defender Gabriel says the team are \u201cready for a big battle\u201d as they prepare to face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday. \u201cIt\u2019s a really good … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1221,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipsport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}