Gabriel Paulista

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Armandoand the second or paternal family name is de Abreu.

Gabriel Paulista

Gabriel with Beşiktaş in 2024
Personal information
Full name	Gabriel Armando de Abreu [1]
Date of birth	(1990-11-26) 26 November 1990 (age 34) [2]
Place of birth	São Paulo, Brazil
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) [2]
Position(s)	Centre-back
Team information
Current team	Beşiktaş
Number	3
Youth career
2009	Taboão da Serra
2009–2010	Vitória
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2013	Vitória	115	(6)
2013–2015	Villarreal	37	(0)
2015–2017	Arsenal	46	(1)
2017–2024	Valencia	182	(8)
2024	Atlético Madrid	5	(0)
2024–	Beşiktaş	9	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 November 2024 (UTC)

Gabriel Armando de Abreu (born 26 November 1990), commonly known as Gabriel Paulista (Brazilian Portuguese: [ɡabɾiˈewpawˈlistɐ] ) or simply Gabriel, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Süper Lig club Beşiktaş.

He began his career with Vitória in 2010, winning two Campeonato Baiano titles and finishing as runner-up in the 2010 Copa do Brasil. He also spent a season-and-a-half in Spain's top flight with Villarreal before joining Arsenal in January 2015. Having won two FA Cups, he moved to Valencia in August 2017. He made over 200 appearances for Valencia, winning the Copa del Rey in 2019.

Club career

Vitória

Born in São Paulo, Gabriel Paulista joined Vitória's youth setup in 2009 from Taboão da Serra, after having failed trials at Grêmio Barueri and Santos. ^[3] He made his senior debut for the former on 7 March 2010, starting in a 3–1 win at Camaçari for the Campeonato Baiano championship, ^[4] his only appearance in a season in which Vitória won the state title. He made his Série A debut on 15 May, replacing Vilson in a 1–1 home draw against Flamengo. ^[5]

In August 2010, Gabriel Paulista appeared in both matches of 2010 Copa do Brasil finals against Santos, but playing as a right back in a 3–2 aggregate loss. On 5 December, in the last game of a league season which saw his team relegated, Gabriel was sent off for a foul on Anaílson in a goalless home draw against Atlético Goianiense. ^[6]

He made his first team breakthrough in late 2011, and went on to play a crucial role in the following year, appearing in 35 matches as Leão returned to Série A. On 6 September 2012 Gabriel Paulista signed a contract extension with Vitória, until 2016. ^[7]

He was elected the best central defender of 2013 Campeonato Baiano; ^[8] he opened in a 7–3 win at city rivals Bahia on 12 May, in the first leg of the final (8–4 aggregate). ^[9] On 25 May, in the opening game of the 2013 season, he scored his only goal in the national league, putting Vitória 2–0 up after 12 minutes against Internacional at the Arena Fonte Nova, an eventual 2–2 draw. ^[10]

Villarreal

On 15 August 2013, Gabriel Paulista moved to La Liga outfit Villarreal, signing a five-year deal with the club. ^[11] He made his debut in the competition on 10 November, starting in a 1–1 home draw against Atlético Madrid. ^[12]

Gabriel Paulista featured in 18 league matches during his first season abroad, sharing terms with Chechu Dorado, as the Yellow Submarine finished sixth and subsequently returned to a European competition. He made his UEFA Europa League debut on 21 August 2014, starting in a 3–0 away win against FC Astana. ^[13]

Profiting from Mateo Musacchio's injury, Gabriel Paulista also overtook Dorado and was made a starter in 2014–15. He formed a strong partnership with new signing Víctor Ruiz, with his side conceding only 17 goals in the 19 league matches in which he appeared.

Arsenal

Gabriel playing for Arsenal in 2015

On 26 January 2015, Gabriel Paulista was granted a work permit by the UK government and expected to join Arsenal for a fee of around £11.3 million. ^[14] He signed for the club two days later, with Joel Campbell moving the other way on loan. ^[15] Manager Arsène Wenger stated that despite the player's fitness, Gabriel could make errors in his first matches due to not being able to speak English. ^[16]

Gabriel Paulista made his debut for Arsenal on 15 February, playing the entirety of a 2–0 home win over Middlesbrough in the fifth round of the FA Cup. ^[17] He made his Premier League debut six days later, coming on for Alexis Sánchez in the final minute of a 2–1 win away to Crystal Palace. ^[18]

Gabriel Paulista made his first full start in the Premier League in Arsenal's 2–0 home win over Everton on 1 March. He experienced a shaky start to the game but later executed a perfect sliding tackle on the goal-bound Romelu Lukaku, cleanly winning the ball. ^[19] He was an unused substitute on 30 May, as Arsenal won the FA Cup final 4–0 against Aston Villa at Wembley Stadium. ^[20]

On 19 September 2015, Gabriel Paulista was sent off against Chelsea for a tussle with Diego Costa; Santi Cazorla was later dismissed as nine-man Arsenal lost 2–0. ^[21] Gabriel initially received a standard three-match suspension for violent conduct after receiving a direct red card, but the decision was later withdrawn after a "wrongful dismissal claim"; ^[22] he was however banned for one match and fined £10,000 for improper conduct by not leaving the pitch immediately. ^[23]

On 28 December 2015, Gabriel headed in Mesut Özil's corner kick to open a 2–0 win against Bournemouth; the result put The Gunners top of the Premier League. ^[24]

Valencia

On 18 August 2017, Gabriel Paulista returned to Spain to join Valencia on a five-year contract. ^[25] He made his debut on 9 September, in a 0–0 home draw against Atlético Madrid. ^[26] On 20 January 2018, he was sent off for dissent in a 2–1 loss at UD Las Palmas, infuriating his manager Marcelino García Toral. ^[27]

Gabriel Paulista played five games as Los Che won the 2018–19 Copa del Rey, including the 2–1 final win over Barcelona on 25 May; it was their first honour for eleven years. ^[28] On 10 December 2019, he was sent off at the end of a 1–0 win at Ajax in the last game of the Champions League group stage, for headbutting Dušan Tadić. ^[29]

In 2020–21, Gabriel Paulista scored a career-best four goals in 31 games, starting with an equaliser in a 4–2 home win over city rivals Levante in the opening game on 13 September 2020. ^[30] He signed a new contract to 2024, in January 2021. ^[31]

Owing to a muscular injury in his right leg, Gabriel Paulista was sidelined from 30 October 2021 ^[32] until the following 26 February, when he needed just four minutes to score the only goal away to Mallorca. ^[33] He played the full 120 minutes of the 2022 Copa del Rey final on 23 April – being booked after five minutes for a foul on Borja Iglesias – as his team lost on penalties to Real Betis. ^[34]

Atlético Madrid

On 31 January 2024, Gabriel Paulista joined fellow La Liga club Atlético Madrid on a free transfer, signing a contract until the end of the season. ^[35]

Beşiktaş

On 15 June 2024, Gabriel Paulista joined Süper Lig club Beşiktaş on a free transfer until 2027. ^[36]

International career

On 20 March 2015, Gabriel Paulista was called up to the Brazil national team for the first time, replacing the injured David Luiz for friendly matches against France and Chile. ^[37] However, he did not feature in either match.

On 9 December 2020, Gabriel Paulista obtained Spanish nationality through residence, and made himself available to represent the Spain national team. ^[38]

Career statistics

As of match played 28 November 2024 ^[39]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			State league [a]		National cup [b]		League cup [c]		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Vitória	2010	Série A	11	0	1	0	2	0	—		8 [d]	0	—		22	0
	2011	Série B	17	0	10	0	0	0	—		—		—		27	0
	2012		35	0	17	4	5	0	—		—		—		57	4
	2013	Série A	14	1	10	1	3	0	—		—		8 [e]	1	35	3
	Total		77	1	38	5	10	0	—		8	0	8	1	141	7
Villarreal	2013–14	La Liga	18	0	—		3	0	—		—		—		21	0
	2014–15		19	0	—		2	0	—		8 [f]	0	—		29	0
	Total		37	0	—		5	0	—		8	0	0	0	50	0
Arsenal	2014–15	Premier League	6	0	—		2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0
	2015–16		21	1	—		4	0	0	0	4 [g]	0	0	0	29	1
	2016–17		19	0	—		3	0	3	0	2 [g]	0	—		27	0
	Total		46	1	—		9	0	3	0	6	0	0	0	64	1
Valencia	2017–18	La Liga	30	0	—		7	0	—		—		—		37	0
	2018–19		30	0	—		5	0	—		11 [h]	0	—		46	0
	2019–20		33	1	—		2	0	—		6 [g]	0	1 [i]	0	42	1
	2020–21		31	4	—		1	0	—		—		—		32	4
	2021–22		19	2	—		2	0	—		—		—		21	2
	2022–23		21	1	—		2	0	—		—		0	0	23	1
	2023–24		18	0	—		1	0	—		—		—		19	0
	Total		182	8	—		20	0	—		17	0	1	0	220	8
Atlético Madrid	2023–24	La Liga	5	0	—		0	0	—		0	0	—		5	0
Beşiktaş	2024–25	Süper Lig	9	1	—		0	0	—		6 [f]	0	1 [j]	0	16	1
Career total			356	11	38	5	44	0	3	0	45	0	10	1	496	17

1. Includes Campeonato Baiano
2. Includes Copa do Brasil, Copa del Rey, FA Cup
3. Includes EFL Cup
4. Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
5. Appearances in Copa do Nordeste
6. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
7. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
8. Five appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League
9. Appearance in Supercopa de España
10. Appearance in Turkish Super Cup

Honours

Vitória

• Campeonato Baiano: 2010, 2013

Arsenal

• FA Cup: 2014–15, 2016–17 ^{[40] [41] [42]}
• FA Community Shield: 2015

Valencia

• Copa del Rey: 2018–19 ^[43]

Beşiktaş

• Turkish Super Cup: 2024 ^[44]

Individual

• Campeonato Baiano Best Central Defender: 2012, 2013

References

1. "Player shirt numbers for 20 Barclays Premier League clubs released". Premier League. 8 August 2015. Archived from the original on 9 August 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
2. "Premier League Player Profile Gabriel Paulista". Barclays Premier League. 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
3. Dispensado pelo Santos, zagueiro vira xerife na Espanha e alvo da cobiça de Barça e Arsenal (Released by Santos, stopper becomes a sheriff in Spain and is a target for Barça and Arsenal); ESPN Brasil, 15 January 2015 (in Portuguese)
4. Vitória 3 x 1 Camaçari: Campeonato Baiano 2012 (Vitória 3–1 Camaçari: 2012 Campeonato Baiano); Futebol Bahiano, 14 February 2012 (in Portuguese)
5. No 'Alagadão', Fla cede o empate ao Vitória no fim da partida: 1 a 1 (In 'Alagadão', Fla gives draw to Vitória in the end: 1–1); Globo Esporte, 15 May 2010 (in Portuguese)
6. "Atlético-GO segura empate no Barradão e rebaixa Vitória" [Atlético-GO secure a draw at the Barradão and send Vitória down] (in Portuguese). Terra. 5 December 2010. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
7. Vitória renova contrato de Gabriel Paulista por mais dois anos (Vitória renews Gabriel Paulista's contract for two further years); Globo Esporte, 6 September 2012 (in Portuguese)
8. Vitória domina lista dos melhores do Baianão 2013 (Vitória dominates list of the bests of Baianão 2013); Globo Esporte, 21 May 2013 (in Portuguese)
9. "Vitória faz 7, volta a humilhar Bahia e se aproxima do título baiano" [Vitória get 7. humiliate Bahia again and get closer to the baiano title] (in Portuguese). Terra. 12 May 2013. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
10. "Vitória abre 2 a 0, mas permite empate do Internacional" [Vitória open 2–0 up, but let Internacional draw] (in Portuguese). CGN. 25 May 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
11. El Villarreal CF ficha al central Gabriel Paulista (Villarreal CF signs stopper Gabriel Paulista) Archived 22 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine ; Villarreal's official website, 15 August 2013 (in Spanish)
12. El Atlético saca provecho de su manual de supervivencia (Atlético takes advantage of their survival guide); Marca, 10 November 2013 (in Spanish)
13. El periscopio amarillo vislumbra Europa (The yellow periscope sees Europe); Marca, 21 August 2014 (in Spanish)
14. Gabriel Paulista granted work permit ahead of £11.3m Arsenal move; The Guardian, 26 January 2015
15. "Arsenal sign Gabriel from Villarreal". Arsenal's official website. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
16. "Arsene Wenger says Gabriel's lack of English could cost goals". BBC Sport. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
17. Jennings, Patrick (15 February 2015). "Arsenal 2–0 Middlesbrough". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
18. Emons, Michael (21 February 2015). "Crystal Palace 1–2 Arsenal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
19. Whalley, Mike (1 March 2015). "Arsenal 2-0 Everton". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
20. McNulty, Phil (30 May 2015). "Arsenal 4–0 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
21. McNulty, Phil (19 September 2015). "Chelsea 2–0 Arsenal" . Retrieved 20 September 2015.
22. "Gabriel has wrongful dismissal claim upheld". The Football Association . 22 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
23. "Gabriel: Arsenal defender given one-match ban and £10,000 fine". BBC Sport. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
24. "Arsenal vs Bournemouth match report: Gabriel and Mesut Ozil fire the Gunners to the top of the Premier League table". The Independent. 28 December 2015.
25. "Comunicado Oficial – Gabriel Paulista". Valencia CF. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 18 August 2017.
26. "Guedes, Pereira y Gabriel se estrenan en la lista del Valencia para recibir al Atlético" [Guedes, Pereira and Gabriel debut on Valencia's team sheet for the hosting of Atlético]. El Economista (in Spanish). 8 September 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
27. Leveridge, Sam (21 January 2018). "Marcelino loses it with Gabriel Paulista: What the hell have you done?". Marca. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
28. Ruthven, Graham (25 May 2019). "Barcelona blow Double chance as Valencia win Copa del Rey final". Eurosport. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
29. "Valencia knocks Ajax out of CL with 1-0 win to advance". USA Today. 10 December 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
30. "Valencia fight back to win six-goal thriller against Levante". New Straits Times. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
31. Burgos, Julián (22 January 2021). "Oficial: Gabriel Paulista renueva con el Valencia hasta 2024" [Official: Gabriel Paulista renews with Valencia until 2024]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 June 2023.
32. Valle, Conrado (11 January 2022). "La eterna lesión de Gabriel Paulista" [Gabriel Paulista's eternal injury]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 June 2023.
33. Ruiz, Jorge (27 February 2022). "Con Gabriel Paulista volvió algo más que un central" [With Gabriel Paulista returned more than just a centre-back] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
34. "El Betis, campeón de la Copa del Rey en los penaltis: 1-1 y 5-4" [Betis, Copa del Rey champions on penalties: 1-1, 5-4]. El País (in Spanish). 23 April 2022. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
35. "Welcome, Gabriel Paulista!". Atlético Madrid. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
36. "Beşiktaşımıza Hoş Geldin Gabriel Paulista" (in Turkish). Beşiktaş J.K. 15 June 2024.
37. Whaling, James (20 March 2015). "Arsenal defender Gabriel Paulista called up to Brazil squad to replace David Luiz". Daily Mirror.
38. "Zagueiro do Valencia, Gabriel Paulista obtém nacionalidade espanhola e sonha em jogar Euro" [Valencia defender, Gabriel Paulista obtains Spanish nationality and dreams of playing in the Euros] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 4 December 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
39. Gabriel Paulista at Soccerway. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
40. "Gabriel Paulista leaves Arsenal for Valencia". Sky News. 21 August 2017.
41. "Gabriel: Arsenal vs Tottenham is like a war". Goal . Retrieved 23 May 2018.
42. "ARSENE WENGER & Arsenal Players Lifting the FA CUP trophy - Amazing Celebrations!". 27 May 2017.
43. "Barcelona 1–2 Valencia". BBC Sport. 25 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
44. "Besiktas claims Turkcell Super Cup with 5-0 win over Galatasaray". Türkiye Today. 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.

External links

• Gabriel Paulista – UEFA competition record ( archive )