Arsenal will take on PSV in the Champions League in midweek and next weekend they face Spurs in the North London Derby and as things stand, forward Gabriel Martinelli is going to miss both these matches.
The Brazilian picked up a hamstring injury during the win over Everton at the weekend and his manager has now confirmed that Martinelli is looking at a small period on the sidelines.
“He felt something in his hamstring and we need to do some further tests to assess if there is any big damage or not,” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta told reporters(h/t Standard).
“But he will be out for tomorrow’s game, for sure. It is a possibility [he could miss the north London derby], we don’t know yet.
“As I said, we need some more tests and let’s see what happens.”
Who is going to replace Gabriel Martinelli in the Arsenal XI?
Gabriel Martinelli has been sensational for Arsenal, playing close to 150 games for the club at the age of just 22 so his absence will definitely be a bit of a blow for the manager.
He’s provided two assists in five Premier League games this season but Mikel Arteta won’t be too worried because Martinelli’s injury is not serious plus he has a like-to-like replacement in the form of Trossard.
Leandro Trossard was the one who replaced Gabriel Martinelli on Sunday and the Belgium international will make the left-wing position his own until Martinelli is back to full fitness.
Arsenal face PSV on Wednesday and there could be a slight reshuffle of the starting lineup for this match because Mikel Arteta will have one eye on the North London Derby. The likes of Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz could be rested in midweek, keeping them fresh and injury-free for Sunday.
Tottenham are in superb form under their new manager and it will be one hell of a battle because, after many seasons, these two North London teams will be very evenly matched as they go into one of the fiercest derbies in English football.
