3 weeks ago
9
Gabriel Magalhaes is expected to miss Arsenal's clash against Tottenham on Sunday after picking up a muscle injury during Brazil's win over Senegal last Saturday
Alan Shearer has claimed Gabriel Magalhaes' absence will be "tough to take" for Arsenal ahead of Sunday's North London Derby. The Gunners are set to be without the 27-year-old against Tottenham after he suffered a muscle injury while playing for Brazil during the international break.
Gabriel appeared to pull up while sprinting in the 64th minute of Brazil's 2-0 win against Senegal at the Emirates Stadium last Saturday. Reports have suggested that Gabriel is expected to now miss at least a month, giving Mikel Arteta major selection headache going into an action-packed schedule.
Should Gabriel be out until mid-December, he would miss no less than seven fixtures, including the clash against Tottenham and next Wednesday's blockbuster Champions League tie at home to Bayern Munich. His absence could be a huge blow for the Gunners, though Arteta's squad is stacked with talent and depth.
Piero Hincapie has been tipped to come straight in alongside William Saliba, though Cristian Mosquera is another option while Riccardo Calafiori and Ben White could both shuffle across into that position.
Although Arteta can call upon his squad to cover Gabriel's absence, Shearer believes the Gunners will miss him more than some think, given his defensive presence and his attacking prowess from set-pieces.
Speaking to Betfair, Shearer said: "News of Gabriel’s injury won't be pleasing for Arsenal fans, but they have got the squad depth to come in. They have other options and it's not as if they're down to the bare bones at Arsenal. They've got the biggest squad they've had for a while in terms of size and quality.
"Gabriel is a top defender and I don't care who comes in, it will be tough to take. Arsenal have good players but there aren’t many Gabriel's around. That's why he gets the reviews he does because of how good he is.
"Defensively he's rock solid and has played a huge part in what Arsenal are doing but certainly from set-pieces, he's a huge cog in what they do in terms of scoring goals and making it very difficult for defences as well. We know how good Arsenal are with set-pieces and he plays a major part in that.
"Although Arsenal have a good replacement to come in and replace him, they're losing probably the best centre-half in the Premier League."
Previewing the North London Derby itself, Shearer is looking forward to the clash between "two huge clubs". The Gunners sit top and four points ahead of second-place Manchester City going into this weekend's fixtures, while Tottenham are down in fifth and eight points worse off.
"The North London Derby is a great game to watch with a good atmosphere between two huge clubs," Shearer said. "Arsenal and Spurs fans will tell you it's the biggest and best, which I get and understand. Newcastle and Sunderland will say it's theirs, Liverpool and Everton will tell you that and so would Celtic and Rangers fans.
"It's a great game and one I love watching. It always seems to give something back for the viewers and I'm looking forward to it. It should be a good game."
English (US) ·