Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhães (Photo: George Wood, Ryan Pearce/Getty Images)
Arsenal’s main center back, Gabriel Magalhães, is out with an injury, so it looks like things will continue to be difficult for them.
The Brazil international could face a long-term absence after suffering a thigh problem while playing for his country in a recent friendly against Senegal at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium.
The timing couldn’t have come at a worse time for Arsenal, who have a series of extremely difficult games ahead of them.
Meanwhile, the statistics show just how much Arsenal will miss Gabriel, and most fans who have watched the team up close won’t be too surprised.
Could Arsenal struggle against Spurs, Bayern and Chelsea with or without Gabriel?
Arsenal’s next three games are at home to Tottenham, home to Bayern Munich and away to Chelsea, all in just seven days.
Arsenal are extremely unlucky to be without Gabriel at what could be a crucial period of the season, with such a demanding schedule sometimes in play.
We know that games are generally intense and fast-paced during this period, so if we can get through this period with a decent result, it could be of great significance in the Premier League title race and the Champions League.
See Opta’s data below. Arsenal’s recent performance with and without Gabriel is shown, and the difference is clear…
| Arsenal records since August 24 | with gabriel | no gabriel |
| game | 39 | 10 |
| victory | twenty four | 4 |
| draw | 11 | 5 |
| loss | 4 | 1 |
| Win % | 61.5% | 40.0% |
| Points per game | 2.1 | 1.7 |
Admittedly, Arsenal won’t be missing many games without Gabriel, but you can see how quickly his absence will be noticed.
Do Arsenal have the depth to cope without Gabriel?
However, one difference from the past is that Arsenal certainly feel they can cover Gabriel better now than before.
Last season, Mikel Arteta’s only real option was to bring in Jakub Kiwioglu alongside William Saliba, and while the Poland international did reasonably well in a few games, it was a notable setback.
Kivior then left the Emirates to join Porto, while Arteta brought in both Cristian Mosquera and Piero Hincapie over the summer.
Neither player has been tested much in the Premier League so far, but Mosquera has been particularly impressive in his previous call-ups, while Hincapie has real pedigree from his days as a key player at Bayer Leverkusen.
Even without these two, Arsenal have other very good options who can fill in at centre-back if needed, with Riccardo Calafioli, Ben White and Julian Timber all capable of playing there.
Replacing Gabriel will be difficult for any club, especially in the long term, but Arsenal have done such a strong job in the summer transfer window and have prepared for this type of scenario that they have good grounds for optimism.
