‘If I could pick one Arsenal player to be unavailable vs Tottenham, it’d be him’
Tottenham have been told that Gabriel Magalhaes’ injury will be a “phenomenal boost” against Arsenal.
Tottenham travel to the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal in the North London derby on Sunday.
Arsenal are set to be without Gabriel, who suffered a thigh injury during Brazil’s 2-0 win over Senegal during the November international break.
While Tottenham are not the favourites to win against Arsenal, Gabriel’s injury may have just boosted their chances against Mikel Arteta’s side in the Premier League clash.
Arsenal will miss Gabriel Magalhaes against Tottenham
Gabriel has faced Tottenham 10 times as an Arsenal player and has won seven of those. The two rivals drew once, and the Gunners lost the other two games.
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While the length of his injury is unknown, there are fears he could be sidelined for several weeks.
The defender nearly always shows up for his team, and as a result, speaking exclusively to Tottenham News, Tottenham expert and Lilywhite Rose owner John Wenham believes his absence could be a huge advantage for Spurs.
“If he is missing, it’s a phenomenal boost because he got the Man of the Match in the last three games against us,” Wenham said.
“He scores every time with the same headed goal, and does that annoying face. If I could pick one Arsenal player to be unavailable, it’d probably be him. I hate to say it, but he’s phenomenal against us every game, and he gets what the derby means.
“He just delivers when it matters for them. For me personally, if I could pick someone to be unavailable, it would probably be him for this particular game.”
Tottenham have their own Gabriel Magalhaes
Micky van de Ven became Spurs’ top scorer in all competitions during their 3-0 win over Everton in the Premier League last month.
The defender has been a secret weapon for the Lilywhites this season and could net again against their rivals.
Thus, if Van de Ven continues his stellar goalscoring form for Tottenham, Frank’s side could surprise several spectators on Sunday.