Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was a relieved man after his side’s 2-1 win over Brighton.
The Gunners started the game really well and took a deserved lead through Martin Odegaard. They had 15 shots at goal in the first half and should’ve scored a few more.
Arsenal went 2-0 up thanks to Georginio Rutter’s own goal after the break, but Diego Gomez pulled one back for the visitors, and that put Mikel Arteta’s side under serious pressure.
The Spaniard was forced to throw Gabriel Magalhaes into the mix to see out the game, and it paid off. But Arteta admitted after the win that he was rushed back.
Who was your Arsenal Man of the Match after 2-1 win against Brighton?
Mikel Arteta says Gabriel Magalhaes was ‘rushed back’ for Arsenal vs Brighton
Gabriel has had a mixed season at Arsenal.
The Brazilian was fantastic in the first 11 Premier League games of the season. He was arguably the best centre-back in the world in that period and made the Gunners an incredibly difficult team to score against.
Then, during the November international break, Gabriel suffered an injury while playing for Brazil in a meaningless friendly.
That kept him out of action for a month, and Arsenal definitely missed him.
Reports had claimed that he was not expected to be back until January, but Gabriel was surprisingly in the Arsenal squad to face Brighton, and he came on as a substitute.
Speaking after the game, Arteta admitted that the defender was hurried to return.
He said, as quoted by BBC Sport: “We had to rush him a little bit, but he was comfortable. The medical staff did a great job again.”
Fill the blanks: The most costly Arsenal injury has been _______ because ____________.
Mikel Arteta’s gamble could’ve ruined Arsenal’s season
Arsenal are really short of options in defence.
Jurrien Timber, Riccardo Calafiori, Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera are all currently injured, and Gabriel was on that list too for over a month.
Arteta’s gamble to rush him back into action paid off, but if it had backfired and the defender suffered another injury, Arsenal’s season would’ve been in trouble.
In the 17 games in all competitions that Gabriel played before his injury, Arsenal conceded just five goals. In the seven-and-a-half league fixtures during his time on the sidelines, their defence was breached seven times.
If Gabriel’s injury had worsened due to his rushed return and he had to spend another month or so on the sidelines, Arsenal would’ve likely dropped points, and that would’ve allowed Manchester City to take charge of the title race.
Thankfully, that didn’t happen, and Arteta can breathe a sigh of relief.
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