Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes couldn't resist a cheeky dig at Tottenham's Richarlison after the Gunners' North London Derby victory over Spurs. Despite not being on the pitch, Gabriel took aim at his international colleague after the match. The 28-year-old defender shared a photo on Instagram of himself with the Arsenal player of the month trophy he'd received, alongside Eberechi Eze's shirt, the man of the match award and a signed football.
Significantly, Gabriel, who was absent from the game due to an injury sustained while playing for Brazil, tagged Richarlison in his post. This move echoed how he had been targeted by Richarlison following Spurs' pre-season friendly win. Back in July, the Spurs forward posted a picture of his player of the match award and tagged Gabriel after Tottenham's 1-0 victory over Arsenal in Hong Kong. In response, Gabriel shared a photo of three Premier League player of the match awards he'd won against Tottenham.
But now, he's really managed to twist the knife when it counts. Gabriel was present at the Emirates for Arsenal's commanding win and joined the on-pitch celebrations at full-time.
Eze's hat-trick and Leandro Trossard's goal meant that Richarlison's impressive long-range strike was in vain. The three points against their local rivals allowed Arsenal to extend their lead at the top of the table to six points after Manchester City dropped points against Newcastle.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has praised his squad's consistency this season but remains cautious about getting carried away with their form.
The Spaniard is eager to welcome back his injured players, particularly key defender Gabriel, though he was full of praise for his replacement following the latest match.
"We are doing really well, we've been really consistent, and that's it," Arteta said in his press conference. "I mean, when you look at the results, whether they win or lose, the difference in the scoreline and actually what happens in games is really small. We know that.
"We need players back immediately today. We've got Noni [Madueke] back on the pitch, which is great, but we're still missing a lot, a lot of important players, and we're going to need all of them.
"The good news is we lost big Gabi, which is a massive blow, and Piero [Hincapie] comes in, and I think he was fantastic from the beginning."