Arsenal star set to miss Real Madrid tie through injury | OneFootball

Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes is set to miss both legs of the upcoming Champions League quarter-final tie against Real Madrid, with fears he could be out for a significant spell.

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On Wednesday night, Gabriel Magalhaes’ wife Gabrielle Figueiredo revealed in a media appearance that the player was with the doctor for tests on the injury he sustained against Fulham in midweek.

“He got an injury yesterday,” Gabrielle confirmed. “That is why he’s not here with me today…now he is with the doctor having scans.”

John Cross reports for the Mirror that the early signs are a major worry, reporting that Arsenal are likely to have an official update by Thursday night or Friday morning.

But even before that, Cross adds that Gabriel is set to miss both legs of Arsenal’s Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid.

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Ed Aarons reports for The Guardian that there are fears Gabriel could be out for a significant spell, with the problem made worse the the player trying to continue playing for more than a minute defending a Fulham attack.

“Gabi felt something in his hamstring, we don’t know how big that is,” Arteta said on the night of the injury. “With Jurrien (Timber) as well, he was already struggling very early in the game. We’ll be assessing them tomorrow (Wednesday).”

With Gabriel pulling up during a sprint, it seems unlikely his injury will turn out to be minor hamstring tightness. A strain is the more probable outcome now.

Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Gabriel has made 42 appearances for Arsenal this season, but he’d had a bit of a break in the immediate build-up to his injury.

Suspended after a yellow card with Brazil on March 21st, the player didn’t have a game for the next 11 days. He spent much of that time in Brazil, including enjoying a Corinthians match from the stands on March 27th.

There’s been some speculation that perhaps that was the problem, with the 27-year-old going from having a game every few days to suddenly having a week and a half off, before returning to fast-paced match action immediately afterwards.

Whatever the reason for the player’s injury, Arsenal will have to adapt quickly ahead of the Champions League quarter-finals.