Mikel Arteta has explained why Gabriel was withdrawn at half-time of Arsenal's 5-2 victory over West Ham on Saturday evening.
The Gunners, as they did in the 6-0 mauling at the London Stadium in February, dominated the Hammers from set-pieces and Gabriel was a particular nuisance amid an utterly bonkers first half.
The prolific Gabriel opened the scoring from an inswinging Bukayo Saka corner and was the man fouled for Arsenal's second penalty of the contest. The defender leapt highest to challenge another Saka set-piece and was caught late by the fist of West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.
With the incident occurring right before half-time, there was speculation as to whether Gabriel had suffered a concussion which forced Arteta to act, but the Gunners didn't use a concussion substitute to replace Gabriel. Jakub Kiwior entered the fray for the second half.
Gabriel Magalhães was Mikel Arteta’s first proper signing at #Arsenal.
He was then the first of our core group to renew, and if the news of a new contract is true, it couldn’t be more deserved.
He can go down as a club legend.
Absolute warrior. #AFC pic.twitter.com/4juGWMSzWN
— Adam Keys (@adamkeys_) November 30, 2024
The Arsenal boss confirmed that Gabriel's injury wasn't to do with the knock he sustained at the end of the half, but related to an existing niggle.
"It was related to the previous injury he had in Lisbon," Arteta admitted in his post-match press conference (via Football London). "We decided to take him off."
Gabriel was a doubt heading into Saturday's game as a result of the injury he sustained against Sporting CP on Tuesday. The Brazilian was a late withdrawal in the 5-1 win, and Arteta hinted that the centre-back was one of several players who couldn't train on Thursday.
There's little information as to what exactly Gabriel is currently dealing with, but there's reason to believe that Arsenal merely acted pre-cautionary at the weekend. There's a big Premier League contest upcoming against Ruben Amorim's Manchester United on Wednesday night, and Arsenal's three-goal advantage at half-time on Saturday meant Arteta was able to withdraw Gabriel without potentially sacrificing three points.
If Gabriel cannot feature against the Red Devils in midweek, Arsenal could turn to Kiwior or potentially utilise Jurrien Timber alongside William Saliba. However, with Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu absent, the shifting of Timber to centre-back would depend on Thomas Partey's fitness. The Ghanaian missed Saturday's victory alongside Mikel Merino, who's picked up a knee injury.
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