You would have been forgiven for forgetting that Pablo Mari even played for Arsenal as we approached the festive period of this season.
Injuries and global pandemic had meant that Spaniard's career at the Emirates had never really got going after his move from Flamengo last January.
But since his return to the Premier League team on Boxing Day, the Gunners have won four games out of four conceding just once in the process.
It's an impressive run for someone who has just returned from a six month injury layoff and Mikel Arteta was quick to praise Mari's form.
“We had to throw him in because we had some injuries, suspensions and probably it was not even fair for him because he has missed a lot of football in the last year,” said Arteta.
“But he is a leader. He is someone who trains really hard, he is really professional.
“He is a great communicator on the pitch and he gives you some security, some stability.
“He has done really well with Rob [Holding], he was really good again on Saturday with David [Luiz]. Three clean sheets in a row and he fully deserves his chance to play.”
When you consider where Arsenal were when Mari made his Premier League come back on Boxing Day, the turnaround has been drastic.
The Gunners were on a two-month winless streak and looked completely devoid of any sort of confidence.
But, unaffected by the mire of such a dismal run, the Spaniard has come in and quietly brought an assurance to the backline that has been missing on some occasions this season.
Gabriel has been largely brilliant since his arrival from Lille since the summer, but there are times when the 23-year-old is a little to eager to engage his opponent high up the pitch. It was this that saw him needlessly sent off against Southampton last month.
Without the pace of his Brazilian teammate Mari is rarely drawn into one-one-one battles so far away from his goal. Instead he prefers use his excellent positioning to anticipate danger.
As well as being confident on the ball the 27-year-old is also good in the air, putting his 193cm frame to good use when dealing with aerial threats.
It is no coincidence that Arsenal haven't conceded a single goal from a set piece since he came back into the side and, via whoscored.com, he now leads the whole squad for successful aerial duels per game with 2.7.
He has also shown himself to be a leader within the dressing room. As Gabriel Martinelli wiped away the tears following his ankle injury in the warm up to the Newcastle game, it was Mari who was pictured consoling the teenager.
The Spaniard currently has the impressive record of having won all eight of the games he has completed in an Arsenal shirt.
After testing positive for COVID-19 over Christmas Gabriel, who once seemed undroppable, now faces a fight on his hands to get back into the team.
The form of both players is exactly what Mikel Arteta has wanted from his defenders as he seeks to build a squad in his own image.
"I just want a really strong core of defenders, central defenders, four to five," he said. "And then generate that competition and also that cohesion which is really necessary."
As Arteta looks to build his squad for the future more in his image it seems as though those four or five positions are starting to take shape rather nicely.
David Luiz, Sokratis and Shkodran Mustafi will all leave the club at the end of the season, while Calum Chambers may well follow suit.
With Rob Holding set to sign a new contract on the right hand side and William Saliba scheduled to return from his loan spell at Nice the right hand side of central defence is looking well stocked, while over on the left, competition between Pablo Mari and Gabriel is fierce.
Mikel Arteta now faces a huge selection headache over who will be his starting centre back going forward, but it's one that he'll undoubtedly welcome.
