Gabriel Magalhaes is reportedly a ‘major doubt’ to play for Arsenal against Tottenham Hotspur this weekend, and even that assessment seems a little optimistic.
After Brazil confirmed news of a thigh injury to Gabriel Magalhaes on Sunday, John Cross reported for the Mirror that the defender is a major doubt to feature in the north London derby on November 23rd.
The results of scans have verified the injury setback, and Gabriel won’t travel to France with Brazil for their next friendly match against Tunisia on Tuesday.
Ed Aarons confirms for The Guardian that Gabriel is a doubt for Sunday’s game against Spurs, adding that Arsenal are concerned their centre-back could be absent for ‘a significant spell’.
Arsenal will reportedly take their time to assess the injury, but there are fears Gabriel could be sidelined for more than just the Spurs game.
That seems likely, given the way he pulled up during a defensive transition. When players pull up with a muscle injury, you rarely see them return to action within a week.
With scans showing that Gabriel has indeed suffered a thigh injury, even the most conservative estimates suggest at least 1-3 weeks out of action. If the injury is more serious, it could be a month or two. A comeback within seven days would be extremely surprising.
Arsenal do have options in defence, with Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera both available to step in, and options to use one of the full-backs at centre-back if necessary.
Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber, and Ben White have all played centrally for Arsenal multiple times in the past, and William Saliba has operated at left-centre-back at times.
But ahead of two London derbies against Spurs and Chelsea and a game against the Champions League leaders in Bayern Munich, Arsenal don’t really have a replacement for Gabriel’s set-piece goals and assists.
It’s a bad time to lose the Brazilian, and others will have to step up in a big way.