Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes has opened up on his first year in England.
Gabriel joined from French champions Lille last summer, signing for £23million after quickly establishing himself as one of Ligue 1's most promising centre-backs.
The tough-tackling Brazilian enjoyed an impressive start to life in north London, picking up three successive player of the month awards for his consistent performances in the Gunners' defence.
However, his performances soon slipped and he found himself in and out of the team in the second half of the season.
Since returning from an injury sustained at the Olympics, Gabriel has got back to his best this season, helping register three wins on the bounce, delivering solid displays against Norwich City, Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur, a run of three games where Mikel Arteta's side have conceded just once.
"It was a year of learning," he told Sky Sports.
"Of course, the team had a bad run, but I started well and overall I think it was a good year for me. I learned a lot of things and I'm a more mature player this year. I know the league better as well."
The 23-year-old admitted that learning English was the hardest part of his debut season but his understanding of the language has greatly improved in recent months, something that has helped his game as he can now communicate better with teammates.
"I think, more than anything on the pitch, the language was the biggest difficulty for me in terms of adapting,"
"There are a lot of players here who speak French, Portuguese and Spanish but in this country, you have to speak English and that was tough for me.
"My English still isn't perfect but it's definitely a lot better than it was and that's helping me a lot."
Gabriel will be hoping to continue Arsenal's impressive form as they take on Graham Potter's Brighton on Saturday ahead of the upcoming international break.
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