Arteta could repair Gabriel’s injury by releasing Arsenal’s £45m ‘beast’

All Arsenal supporters prayed for no injuries this international break, but their prayers certainly went unanswered.

On Saturday, at his home, the Emirates Stadium, Gabriel hobbled out about an hour into Brazil’s 2-0 friendly win over Senegal in north London.

He reportedly has an adductor injury, the severity of which is still unknown, but his absence will be a big blow.

To make matters worse, Riccardo Calafioli returned early from the Italian camp and missed the Azzurri’ game against Moldova in Chisinau on Thursday night.

Head coach Gennaro Gattuso said: “We tried to make him available, but we can’t force him now,” which will be a worry for Mikel Arteta given the 23-year-old’s injury history.

Both players have started all 11 Premier League games so far, so ignoring the Gunners’ next three games against Tottenham (H), Bayern Munich (H) and Chelsea (A) could be a big problem.

Nevertheless, Arteta already boasts an ideal deputy.

Numbers that confirm Arsenal’s defensive solidity

Until last weekend’s 2-2 draw with Sunderland, Arsenal had kept eight consecutive clean sheets, equaling the club record set in 1903.

The statistics confirm how dominant Arteta’s side have been defensively so far this season.

As the table shows, Arsenal are ranked first in every defensive metric in the Premier League this season.

Despite a record seven clean sheets with just 21 shots on target, some have jokingly suggested that David Raya may require him to work from home, even if the Spaniard made some exceptional saves to be fair.

However, Gabriel and Calafioli have been key contributors to this consistency, and while supporters may be wondering how Arteta’s side will fare in their absence, do they have any immediate quality players waiting to take their place?

How can Arsenal solve the injury crisis in their defense?

After last season was completely derailed by injuries, Arsenal made a huge recruitment spree in the summer to avoid a similar situation and sense of déjà vu.

In terms of defenders, Cristian Mosquera arrived from Valencia for £13 million, and the Spaniard has performed brilliantly in every appearance, with the Guardian’s Sid Lowe pointing out that everyone in north London agrees he is an absolute ‘bargain’.

By contrast, the most high-profile summer signing was the arrival of Pierro Hincapie, who joined on loan from Bayer Leverkusen on deadline day, but with a buyout obligation at a no small expense of £45m, could their Gabriel-Saliba hybrid be about to step into the spotlight after a few weeks on the sidelines?

Following his arrival, Arteta said the 23-year-old has a “real physical presence” and praised his “versatility and tactical flexibility”, thereby strengthening his team’s “defensive options”, which is certainly appropriate for the moment.

Meanwhile, U23 scout Antonio Mango described him as an “absolute beast”, while his agent went even further, calling him a “warrior” and “leader”. It’s easy to see why he is compared to the club’s two leading centre-halves.

During his four seasons at Bayer Leverkusen, Hincapie made 166 appearances for Die Werkself and was a key figure in Xabi Alonso’s side, who achieved the Bundesliga title and an unbeaten DFB Pokal title in 2023/24, achieving the club’s first ever Masterschalet.

He was also a solid member of the defense at international level, starting 14 of Ecuador’s 18 World Cup qualifying games, as Sebastian Beccasese’s side tied a South American record by conceding just five goals in all competitions.

As outlined by Arceblog’s Phil Costa, Hincapie’s greatest strength is his ability to play not only as a reliable centre-back but also as an attacking left wing-back, and he has excelled in both roles under manager Alonso, labeling him as “aggressive” and “an unashamed South American” and highlighting his “strong pace of recovery”.

Well, given that Calafioli and Gabriel are both heavily doubted to feature in Sunday’s North London derby, Hincapie is likely to start at left-back or left-sided centre-back.

Alternative options are Miles Lewis-Skelly and the aforementioned Mosquera, but while Arteta is unlikely to bring in such a young duo, he has shown a preference for left-footed centre-backs Pablo Mari and Jakub Kivioglu, among other examples, suggesting the Ecuadorian will take up a midfield position alongside William Saliba.

During Arsenal’s recent win over Slavia Prague, the 1,000 or so Gooners who visited the Czech capital spent much of the afternoon and evening singing Hinkapie’s new songs.

One line includes the lyric “Arsenal will be thrilled to see you play”, which is no different considering he is set to play a key role in an important upcoming match.