{"id":2470,"date":"2026-04-05T11:31:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T11:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/?p=2470"},"modified":"2026-04-05T11:31:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T11:31:41","slug":"mikel-arteta-issues-gabriel-injury-update-as-arsenal-crisis-worsens-never-good-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/?p=2470","title":{"rendered":"Mikel Arteta issues Gabriel injury update as Arsenal crisis worsens &#8211; &#8216;Never good news&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_68255d\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">Arsenal defender Gabriel was forced off with 20 minutes remaining in their FA Cup loss to Southampton as Mikel Arteta issued a worrying update on his centre-half<\/h2>\n<div class=\"Byline_byline-container__K_Owl\" data-testid=\"byline\"><span class=\"Byline_byline-content-wrapper__Imque\" data-testid=\"byline-content\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"Byline_author-badge-date-wrapper__Q7jj1\">\n<p><span class=\"\" data-testid=\"byline-publishedDate\">08:53, 05 Apr 2026<\/span><span class=\"ArticleTimestamp_updated-date__7qD4Q ArticleTimestamp_updated-date-with-published__iFKpF\" data-testid=\"byline-updatedDate\">Updated 09:22, 05 Apr 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"36970572\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Gabriel came off with an injury concern in Arsenal's loss at Southampton\" loading=\"eager\" sizes=\"(max-width: 508px) 508px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970572.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/0_GettyImages-2269827480.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970572.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s508\/0_GettyImages-2269827480.jpg 508w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970572.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615\/0_GettyImages-2269827480.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970572.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/0_GettyImages-2269827480.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Gabriel came off with an injury concern in Arsenal's loss at Southampton\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Gabriel came off with an injury concern in Arsenal&#8217;s loss at Southampton<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Mikel Arteta revealed that Gabriel asked to come off in Arsenal&#8217;s loss at Southampton after he felt an issue, which he confessed is &#8220;never good news&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The Gunners were beaten on the south coast as they were on the receiving end of an FA Cup shock and, to add insult to injury, they&#8217;re now sweating on the fitness of one of their leading lights.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Gabriel started at the heart of defence, but came off on 72 minutes with William Saliba replacing him. That change was not tactical with the Brazilian centre-half requesting to come off as Arteta revealed that Arsenal will have to assess his fitness, but didn&#8217;t appear positive about the outlook.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Arteta said: \u201cI don&#8217;t know, I think he felt something &#8211; I don&#8217;t know exactly what it is. We&#8217;re going to have to assess him &#8211; but obviously when a player is asking to be substituted, it&#8217;s never good news.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Gabriel began the night without usual partner Saliba, with Cristhian Mosquera instead pairing up. They were unable to prevent Southampton taking the lead at St Mary&#8217;s and Gabriel was off the pitch when Shea Charles scored their winner with just five minutes remaining.<\/p>\n<p><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_de167e\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">Mikel Arteta issues immediate Arsenal demand after shock FA Cup exit to Southampton<\/span><\/span><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_de167e\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">Arsenal fan Piers Morgan left with egg on his face after Southampton remind him of reaction<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">It is the second cup competition that has passed Arsenal by in less than a fortnight. They lost the Carabao Cup final to rivals Manchester City at Wembley and then, despite being drawn against a Championship outfit, they&#8217;ve now seen their FA Cup hopes disappear.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">An injury to Gabriel, who has been one of their top performers this term, would be a huge blow with the business end of the season approaching. Arsenal are looking to recover from several setbacks and push on in the title race, where they hold a nine point lead over City.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-36970571\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"36970571\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.51\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Arsenal's season was dealt another blow after their FA Cup exit\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970571.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2269836511.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970571.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_GettyImages-2269836511.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970571.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_GettyImages-2269836511.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36970571.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_GettyImages-2269836511.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Arsenal's season was dealt another blow after their FA Cup exit\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Arsenal&#8217;s season was dealt another blow after their FA Cup exit<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">They still have to play Pep Guardiola&#8217;s side at the Etihad &#8211; which will take place in a fortnight. They&#8217;re also in the Champions League hunt and face Sporting Lisbon in the last eight ahead of a possible semi-final against either Barcelona or Atletico Madrid.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Arteta doubled down on his and the team&#8217;s methods as they look to get back on track. He said: &#8220;Giving (the players) clarity, even more conviction now, and trusting the players &#8211; believing in what we&#8217;re doing, continuing to do that with little tricks that every game demands. But especially, maintaining the spirit, the attitude and the energy at the highest possible level, because that&#8217;s critical to perform at the level that we need to win matches.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/chat.whatsapp.com\/Feq1SEG6mXDIZGTTnek7oz\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"><em>Join our new WhatsApp community<\/em> <\/a>and receive your daily dose of <em>Mirror<\/em> <em>Football<\/em> content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don&#8217;t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you&#8217;re curious, you can read our <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reachplc.com\/site-services\/privacy-policy\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"><em>Privacy Notice.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Arsenal defender Gabriel was forced off with 20 minutes remaining in their FA Cup loss to Southampton as Mikel Arteta issued a worrying update on his centre-half 08:53, 05 Apr 2026Updated 09:22, 05 Apr 2026 Gabriel came off with an injury concern in Arsenal&#8217;s loss at Southampton Mikel Arteta revealed that Gabriel asked to come [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2471,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arsenal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2470\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}