Wenger Offers Injury Update On Gabriel Paulista After He’s Forced Off Against QPR

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has confirmed that new defender Gabriel Paulista has suffered a hamstring injury and is facing a spell on the sidelines.

After impressing against Everton on Sunday, Gabriel was handed just his second Premier League start at Loftus Road on Wednesday night but he lasted just 37 minutes as he went down clutching his leg.

Laurent Koscielny replaced the Brazilian central defender and Wenger confirmed to Arsenal.com after the game that Gabriel has unfortunately suffered a hamstring injury.

The boss said he wasn’t sure how bad the problem is, but as he was forced off he’s expecting it to mean around three weeks on the sidelines.

Wenger told the clubs website:

on Gabriel…

It’s a hamstring. I don’t know, it’s bad enough to come off. It’s usually 21 days, not years!

It’s a bitter blow to lose Gabriel so soon after he joined the club and he was just making his breakthrough in to the first team. His absence once again leaves us low on options at the back as Nacho Monreal also missed the QPR game with a back problem while Mathieu Debuchy remains out with a shoulder injury.

Gabriel now seems certain to miss Monday’s FA Cup quarter final clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford and if the three week absence is confirmed, he’ll also miss upcoming games against West Ham, Monaco and Newcastle.

Thankfully we recovered from the loss of the centre-back to beat QPR 2-1 with Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez both getting on the score-sheet. The win ensures we stay third in the Premier League as Man Utd, Liverpool and Tottenham all also picked up wins on Wednesday night.