Arsenal are facing a race against time to see whether defender Gabriel Magalhaes is fit for this weekend's clash against Chelsea.
The talented Brazilian centre-back has recently missed wins against Spurs and Bayern Munich after sustaining an injury on international duty with Selecao.
Is Gabriel Magalhaes injured ahead of Chelsea vs Arsenal this weekend?
It was almost weirdly fitting in a way that a lengthy journey to South America had no real part in Gabriel's latest knock, as the Arsenal man sustained his hamstring injury whilst playing for Brazil at the Emirates Stadium.
Involved for 64 minutes in the 2-0 win over Senegal for Carlo Ancelotti's side, you could see the pain wretched across Gabriel's face as Roma defender Wesley was brought on to replace him.
The latest update Arteta gave was ahead of last weekend's North London derby victory over Spurs, in which the Spaniard said he expects Gabriel to be out of action for a prolonged period.
Hes going to be out for weeks, he said. Its clearly a blow because its our leader in our backline and to me its obviously never a positive thing. The good thing is that we have very good options and people have to stand up now and do their job.
But Arteta opened up on the opportunity the 27-year-old's injury brings, admitting there is now a chance for some to step up and stamp their authority.
"I think he was really good," said Arteta when asked about Mosquera's performance against Bayern. "With Piero [Hincapi], we need to understand where he's coming from. He came from Ecuador after playing two 90s in big trouble played the derby, the first start that he had in the Premier League, and he finished the game very, very tired.
"[But] that's the good thing that we have Mosquera who he can play in different positions. He was superb I think, both together with William [Saliba].
In FourFourTwo's view, we think Gabriel is unlikely to feature until at least the Wolves game on December 13, with games now coming thick and fast for the Gunners.
It's a period which will really test the character of this Arsenal squad, who some are considering heavy favourites for the Premier League title.
Do you think Arsenal have what it takes? Or will Gabriel be too big of a miss? Let us know down below...
TOPICS
