Arsenal discover Gabriel Magalhaes injury diagnosis as Brazil release medical update

Arsenal learned of the diagnosis of Gabriel Magalhaesthe injury, with the Brazil The national team released a statement on Sunday afternoon.

The Gunners centre-back took to his home turf on Saturday night, turning out for the Selecao in a match 2-0 friendly victory against Senegal at the Emirates Stadium, where Estevao Willian and Casemiro found the net.

However, Gabriel left the field prematurely in the 49th minute with an apparent groin injuryfor which Brazilian coach Carlo Ancelotti apologized during his post-match press conference.

Gabriel’s injury has sparked concern among Arsenal fans, whose side face a series of daunting matches against Tottenham Hotspur, Bayern Munich and Chelsea between now and the end of the month following the international break.

Brazil have issued a further update on the 27-year-old’s problem, confirming that he has suffered a right thigh injury and will not take part in their upcoming friendly against Tunisia.

Brazil issues statement on injury to Arsenal’s Gabriel Magalhaes

“Gabriel Magalhaes will not travel with the team for the match against Tunisia,” a statement said. “The defender left the field yesterday after feeling pain in the adductor muscle of his right thigh.

“Arsenal player Gabriel Magalhaes was reassessed this Sunday (16) and underwent imaging tests which revealed a muscle injury in his right thigh. The player will therefore not travel with the team for the match against Tunisia in Lille. No other player will be called up to replace him.”

It’s not yet clear how long Gabriel’s problem might rule him out, but even minor thigh injuries often require a two or three week recovery period. It is therefore not impossible to envisage missing all of Spurs, Bayern and Chelsea over the next fortnight.

The possible absence of Gabriel during these three huge clashes would be a big blow for Mikel Arteta who oversaw the Brazil international’s rise to become one of Europe’s most respected defenders during his five years at the Emirates.

The 27-year-old has scored two goals and provided three assists in 17 matches in all competitions this season, and has also played his part in an outstanding 13 clean sheets for the Premier League leaders.

How can Arsenal replace injured Gabriel Magalhaes in defense?

Thanks to what Gabriel brings in both boxes for Arsenal, the South American set-piece specialist is arguably irreplaceable for the Gunners, but Arteta and Andrea Berta have put together a team capable of dealing with such absences.

Arsenal were scared Riccardo Calafiori this weekend too, as the Italian international said withdrew from Azzurri camp with hip injurybut the Gunners expect him to be available for the north London derby.

Calafiori would be a natural alternative to Gabriel alongside William Saliba, and moving the Italian into a central role would allow either Myles Lewis-Skelly or Piero Hincapie to take over left-back duties while Gabriel recovers.

However, Arteta could also carry out a direct swap between the former Lille man and Hincapie, thus keeping Calafiori in his hybrid left-back role, where the former Bologna defender has excelled this season.

Jurrien Bois wouldn’t look out of place in a left centre-back role either, but Arteta has spoken of Hincapie often since his arrival from Bayer Leverkusen, so the Ecuador international should be gearing up for a north London derby next weekend.