Injured Arsenal pair both in contention to start vs Newcastle | OneFootball

Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White are both at least in contention for involvement against Newcastle United on Monday night.

Given Rob Holding’s red-card suspension, Arsenal have been sweating on the fitness situations of Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White over the last few days.

Gabriel picked up an injury during the match against Spurs, whilst White still hasn’t returned to the pitch following his hamstring problem. White was in the squad on the bench on Thursday.

The Guardian reported on Sunday that White seems likely to start the Newcastle game, whilst Gabriel’s involvement will be a late call.

But there’s been one positive sign in the build-up to the match, as an Arsenal fan got a picture with Gabriel travelling up to Newcastle.

That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s fit. It’s a long journey and if there’s any chance at all of his involvement then travelling makes sense – even if it’s only a very small chance.

Still, a small chance is better than nothing, and if Arsenal had discovered a serious problem for Gabriel in the last few days there’s no way they would be taking him away from the medical facilities at London Colney to traipse up to Newcastle.

This is a must-win game for Arsenal after Spurs’ wins this week, so the Gunners really need their main defensive duo available. It would be a big boost to the rest of the team to see both of them in the lineup.