Arsenal face a hectic fixture schedule, and are set to welcome Aston Villa to the Emirates on Sunday.
This comes just days after a 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday, and there will be little time to recover after the clash with Unai Emery’s side as Arsenal will face the German giants again in Munich on Wednesday.
Mikel Arteta’s side will have to balance their Premier League and Champions League commitments well with smart rotation, as they are top of the table and could reach a first semi-final since 2009.
Arsenal are blessed with a near fully-fit squad, with Jurrien Timber the only injured absentee for the Bayern game, but this may no longer be the case as he has hinted that there were problems after the Champions League clash.
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Mikel Arteta drops worrying Arsenal injury hint over Gabriel Magalhaes
Speaking in a press conference, Arteta was asked about the availability of centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes, after the defender missed training on Friday afternoon.
“We’ve got one more day to prepare the match. We will see tomorrow if everyone is available,” he responded when asked about Gabriel.
“We have some (issues from Bayern) but hopefully with another day we’ll be OK,” he stated when asked if any injury issues followed the Bayern game.
Arsenal will face huge problem if Gabriel Magalhaes is injured
Gabriel missed training on Friday, but still has another day to assess his fitness before the clash with Aston Villa.
The Brazilian missed the recent International break as a precaution over a potential injury, but has since featured in every minute of Arsenal’s four games since.
If he was to miss one game, then Arsenal have the depth to cope without him, but losing him for longer would be a huge blow, given that he has been one of Arsenal’s best players this season.
Gabriel was described as “massive” by Arsenal youngster Mika Biereth, and has formed the best centre-back partnership in the Premier League with William Saliba.
Arsenal do have options, as one of Jakub Kiwior or Ben White could move to the centre of defence, with Takehiro Tomiyasu also capable of stepping in, but any option would be a downgrade as Arteta would lose Gabriel’s dominance in the air in both boxes.