Arsenal Transfers: Gabriel will not be leaving this summer

Arsenal defender Gabriel will not be leaving the club this summer despite growing speculation.

The Brazilian was a fixture in the Gunners’ defence last season, enjoying his most impressive campaign in north London, but has been named on the bench for the club’s first two Premier League games of 2023/24, fuelling speculation over his future.

Gabriel entered the fray in the second half against both Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace, with the imposing centre-back playing a key role in ensuring Arsenal walked away from Selhurst Park with all three points on Monday night.

He even took the armband following Martin Odegaard’s substitution, and, overall, he didn’t look like a player on the brink of leaving the club.

Gabriel will not be leaving Arsenal this summer

Rumours emerged ahead of Monday’s game that Saudi Pro League side Al Ittihad had an interest in the former Lille defender and had met with Gabriel’s representatives in a bid to engineer a move. And while Al Ittihad’s interest may be concrete, Mikel Arteta said after Monday’s win that he has no intentions of selling Gabriel before the summer deadline.

Asked post-match whether Gabriel was left out of the team due to speculation surrounding his future, the Arsenal boss said: “Out of the starting XI due to offers? Nothing at all, it was just about games that we were expecting… trust me, Gabriel is going to play a lot of games”.

Arteta’s subtle systematic shift has seen Gabriel miss out at the start of 2023/24, although Arsenal’s fairly sluggish opening despite their triumphs could see the boss return to more familiar dynamics next week and beyond.

The Gunners’ current lack of options down the left-hand side of the defence should see Oleksandr Zinchenko start in his inverted role with Gabriel returning to the fold against Fulham.

Arsenal will, of course, be without Jurrien Timber for the foreseeable future and Takehiro Tomiyasu for one game after his harsh sending-off at Selhurst Park.