What Arsenal are privately saying about Gabriel’s injury is actually good news despite Tottenham doubt

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Gabriel Magalhaes’ injury on international duty was a nightmare for Mikel Arteta, but Arsenal’s feelings towards his absence are very telling.

Arsenal carried an injury crisis into the international break, making Gabriel’s injury all the more frustrating.

Though the Gunners are yet to provide an official timeline of the Brazilian’s recovery, an injury expert believes Gabriel could miss up to six weeks with a grade two groin issue.

The news is devastating, given that Arsenal’s next three fixtures come against Tottenham, Bayern Munich and Chelsea; however, the feeling behind the scenes isn’t exactly what many would expect.

Arsenal are not panicking about Gabriel Magalhaes’ injury because of Cristhian Mosquera

Despite the influx of first-team injuries that Arteta is dealing with right now, there’s actually a sense of calm regarding Gabriel.

That’s the understanding of the Daily Mail, who have revealed that Arsenal are ‘not panicking’ about their defender’s unavailability for one reason: Cristhian Mosquera. 

Pundits have been so impressed with Mosquera since his transfer from Valencia, as have those at Arsenal, with the Daily Mail sharing the following information.

‘Internally, there has been excitement over the progress of Cristhian Mosquera, who has impressed each time he has been called upon.’

So, while Gabriel’s injury is a blow, Arteta will not be losing sleep, as he is already aware that Mosquera is more than capable of bridging the gap left by the Brazilian.

Mikel Arteta already has full trust in Mosquera

The issue Arsenal had last season, and for years prior, was that the gap between first and second-choice options was too vast.

Now, the gap has been narrowed, with Mosquera proving his worth in arguably the most testing fixture of the Premier League season.

On matchday three, Mosquera ran the show against Liverpool, slotting in next to Gabriel at Anfield after William Saliba went off injured after just seven minutes.

After the contest, despite Arsenal’s defeat, Arteta expressed his relief that Mosquera was able to come on and make Saliba’s absence feel insignificant.

“Thank God we had Mosquera, which we put in for the first time in the Premier League. His debut, not expecting it at Anfield, and I think he was really, really good,” Arteta said post-match at Anfield.

The Arsenal manager has shown that he trusts the Spaniard as he would Gabriel or Saliba, making the Brazilian’s expected North London Derby absence less daunting.