Arsenal duo William Saliba and Gabriel provided the perfect response to Frank Lampard after the Chelsea legend shut down comparisons to John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho.

Lampard said that Saliba and Gabriel must win major trophies with Arsenal before they can be likened to some of the best centre-back partnerships of the Premier League era, including Terry and Carvalho.

Saliba and Gabriel have played an integral role in Arsenal’s rise under Mikel Arteta over the last two seasons, with both players rewarded with a place in the PFA Team of the Year last term.

This season, Saliba and Gabriel have picked up where they left off, with the Gunners conceding just six times in their opening eight matches going into Tuesday’s Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain.

Before the clash with the Ligue 1 side, Lampard gave a brutal answer when asked about whether Saliba and Gabriel are comparable with Terry and Carvalho, who were both crucial to Chelsea’s success in the 2000s.

He told Amazon Prime Video: “No, not yet. If they go and win two or three Premier Leagues and a Champions League then maybe you can compare them.

Listen, I’m not putting them down. They are fantastic, young and they’re growing all the time. It’s not fair to make that comparison because this is all ahead of them. But at this point, no. But what they’re doing at the minute is great things. But yeah, win some stuff, boys, and you can get in that conversation fully.”

In response, Saliba and Gabriel both put in a monster defensive performances to shut out PSG and keep a well deserved clean sheet as the Gunners ran out 2-0 winners. Failing to score altogether is a rare feat for PSG, who had netted in 51 group or ‘league’ phase matches in the Champions League prior to the trip to the Emirates.

Both Saliba and Gabriel were excellent and didn’t give PSG much at all. Although comparisons to all-time greats of the Premier League might be a little premature, Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand believes that Saliba and Gabriel are Europe’s best based on current form.

“Yeah, definitely. I think they are. They proved that the last couple of seasons now,” Ferdinand said on TNT Sports earlier this month. “They’re resolute. They’re hard. They can do it in different ways. You’ve got a great blend. Saliba is a little bit more calm and wants to cover and sweep a little bit. Gabriel’s on the front foot, more of a Martin Keown type. [He’s an] aggressive-type player. They complement each other so well.”