Mikel Arteta teases Arsenal surprise as new Gabriel injury scan details emerge

Arsenal will be without defensive talisman Gabriel Magalhaes this Sunday when they face Tottenham in the North London Derby and the Gunners are still awaiting further clarity on his thigh injury

Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal can cope with the absence of injured talisman Gabriel Magalhaes - by springing a North London Derby surprise against Tottenham.

The imperious defender is expected to be sidelined for at least one month with a thigh issue sustained on international duty with Brazil last weekend.

However, Arteta claims the Gunners have managed without Gabriel before and the Spaniard is also optimistic he could well have his ranks bolstered by a number of returning stars this weekend - even if he won't say who.

The Arsenal boss said when asked if Gabriel is the team's most difficult player to replace: "I don't know. Obviously he's a big, big player for us but the good thing is that we have experienced that.

"Last year, in the most crucial moment of the season, we were without him for three months and the team managed to remain super competitive.

"We won a lot of matches, we were defensively really good against very, very tough opponents, so we need to do it again."

While tomorrow's clash is likely to come too soon for Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres, there is a chance captain Martin Odegaard, Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli could return to the fold.

Arteta continued: "We put in a lot of energy during the international break with all the medical staff as well to try to bring them back as quickly as possible.

"So tomorrow [Saturday] we'll have another training session, see how some of them are feeling and see whether it's a bit too close to bring them in for this game or whether we feel that they can contribute. Tomorrow we'll have more clarity.

"I'm hopeful that we can make another step tomorrow, but certainly I cannot tell you."

When asked whether he could reveal who might be available, Arteta added: "No, I can! But, no."

Arteta also revealed Gabriel is set for a new scan on his thigh next week, stating: "We need to have another scan. I think it's next Wednesday, and we'll probably have the timeline which will be much clearer than what we have at the moment."

Riccardo Calafiori is yet to train after battling a hip issue while on international duty with Italy.

The left-back is one of several candidates that could slot in at the heart of defence alongside William Saliba, should he prove his fitness.

Arteta said of Calafiori: "He's been carrying a few things and we had to bring him back. He hasn't trained yet, so tomorrow we have another training session and we'll see how he is."

Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera are also pushing to start in place of Gabriel.