Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal have already demonstrated that they can cope with Gabriel Magalhaes’ injury.
Gabriel was forced off with a thigh injury during Brazil’s 2-0 win against Senegal at the Emirates Stadium last Saturday.
The 27-year-old is due to undergo another scan next week, however, Arsenal’s medical team believe the centre-back could miss a minimum of four weeks.
Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapie have already impressed since joining Arsenal in the summer transfer window and both are potential options to replace Gabriel at the heart of Arteta’s defence.
Gabriel missed Arsenal’s final 12 games last season due to a hamstring injury which required surgery. Jakub Kiwior deputised in the Brazilian’s absence alongside William Saliba but he joined Porto on loan in the summer.
Asked if Gabriel is the most difficult player in his squad to replace, Arteta said ahead of Arsenal’s Premier League match against Tottenham on Sunday: ‘I don’t know, obviously he’s a big, big player for us but the good thing is that we have experienced that.
‘Last year, in the most crucial moment of the season, we were without him for three months and the team managed to remain super competitive.
‘We won a lot of matches, we were defensively really good against very, very tough opponents, so we need to do it again.’
Arteta also revealed that Gabriel will still remain a close part of the squad during his recovery period.
‘The fact that you cannot play or train doesn’t mean that you cannot do all the other activities and add value to the team,’ said Arteta.
‘He’s going to be very close to the team.’