Arsenal move one step closer to the perfect international break amid Gabriel Magalhaes update
The first international break of the season is nearly over but the first round of fixtures brought about one fresh injury concern for Arsenal.
Gabriel Magalhaes finally made his Brazil debut against Bolivia over the weekend. However, an impressive display was somewhat overshadowed when he was substituted late on and was later seen holding an ice pack on his thigh.
On one hand, this is exactly what Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta would have been hoping to avoid as the 16 senior players selected for international duty returning in the same physical state they left in is the ideal scenario. With that said, the fact Gabriel trained on Sunday suggests the defender is not injured.
More will be revealed should the central defender retain his place in the starting line-up for Brazil's World Cup qualifier against Peru in the early hours of Wednesday (UK time) but the fact he's not been sent back to London Colney for treatment is perhaps the clearest indication that he's fine and raring to go.
As a result, the Spanish tactician is now just one more round of fixtures away from avoiding the worst-case scenario ahead of his side's return to Premier League action against Everton.
Of course, Gabriel isn't the only Brazilian whom the Arsenal boss will be hoping for good news on as Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli were also called up by new manager Fernando Diniz and the former could start in attack given Richarlison's struggles in front of goal.
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So, for Arteta's dream international break to be confirmed, all he needs is for the Brazil trio and his 11 remaining Arsenal first-team players still on duty to be managed sensibly. Martin Odegaard is
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