Mikel Arteta will not believe his bad luck.
In the same game as key player Bukayo Saka scored on his long-awaited return from injury, the Arsenal manager lost another in centre-back Gabriel before their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid next week.
The defender limped off in the first half of Tuesday's 2-1 win over Fulham with a hamstring injury. To add to Arteta's defensive worries, Jurrien Timber also had to be withdrawn against Fulham with a knee problem, while Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori were ruled out of the game with knee trouble.
Gabriel has been one of the Gunners' best performers in a challenging season and team-mate Declan Rice acknowledged his value to their Champions League chances.
"I don't know what's happened. I hope he's OK because he's been arguably our best player this season and we need him for big matches and big occasions," said Rice.
Arsenal's chances of winning suffer when Gabriel is out of the team. The team's win percentage is 63.50% from the 159 games he has played since his Premier League debut compared to 40.90% in the 22 games he has missed in the league during that time.
