Gabriel Maghalaes faces a lengthy spell out because of a hamstring injury sustained during the win against Fulham with Mikel Arteta confirming Riccardo Calafiori remains out with Ben White and Jurrien Timber facing late fitness tests
Mikel Arteta is calling on other Arsenal players to stand up and be counted after confirming centre-back Gabriel Maghalaes will be “out for a while” after injuring a hamstring against Fulham. The Gunners visit Everton on Saturday lunchtime before the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid.
And with Riccardo Calafiori also on the sidelines and Arsenal waiting to see if Jurrien Timber and Ben White are good to return, Arteta admitted: “It’s tough. The team has reacted like it has all season, which I am proud of.
“We know he’ll be out for a while. We must find different solutions. We’ve come so far. Now we have the most important, beautiful part of the season. Other players will have opportunities to play. The team has to find other ways. We have the resources.”
Arteta added that Calafiori “is not fit as well” and “n the last week or so we’ve lost four players. That is a big task. Let’s see how Ben and Jurrien are tomorrow as well. We’ll keep playing, keep competing. We have to decide early in the morning which players we can play and for how long.”
Gabriel will undergo surgery on his hamstring injury sustained against Fulham on Tuesday and Arsenal are hoping he will be fit for the start of next season. That means the Brazil centre half will miss both legs of the Champions League quarter-final with Real Madrid and a potential push for European glory.
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Gabriel will also have to sit out the remaining games of Arsenal’s Premier League campaign having become the third player in Arteta’s squad this season to require surgery on a hamstring injury after Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz.
Saka was out for just over three months and made his first team return on Tuesday, coming off the bench to score, and he hopes to be firing on all cylinders against Real Madrid.
Havertz suffered his hamstring injury while on a mid-season break in Dubai in January to leave the Gunners without a recognised centre forward in the squad.
Gabriel Martinelli has also missed several weeks with a hamstring injury which did not need surgery. Martin Odegaard, Ben White and Gabriel Jesus are among those who have had significant lay-offs while last summer’s signing Calafiori has missed weeks with different issues, the latest sustained while on international duty with Italy last month.
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