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Arsenal are concerned that center-back Gabriel Magalhães could be unavailable for no less than four weeks after picking up a muscle strain while on international duty in the past few days.

Gabriel limped off during Brazil's triumph against Senegal in a exhibition match at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday and has since returned to his club for additional assessments.

Club examinations are continuing, and the club have yet to confirm the exact duration of the defender's time out.

However, he is unlikely to feature for the upcoming North London derby on Sunday or the European meeting with Bayern Munich just later.

Potential Absence and Missed Matches

There are concerns that Gabriel could be out for a minimum of four weeks, perhaps more, based on the severity of the injury.

This would see him miss of several important matches, like:

• Premier League fixtures against Chelsea and the Bees at home
• An road match to play Villa
• The Champions League match at Brugge on December 10th

Mikel Arteta's team—who presently hold a significant advantage over Manchester City—afterwards meet Wolverhampton at the Emirates before a rearranged fixture to Everton on December 20th.

Significant Blow for Arsenal's Championship Bid

Losing such an influential player could prove a serious problem for the Gunners in their title bid.

This defender has featured in all minutes of the Premier League campaign so far and is crucial to a defense that has let in just five times in 11 games.

Prior to the latest tie at the Stadium of Light, the side had kept eight consecutive shutouts in all competitions.

Cover Options and Other Injury Worries

Cristhian Mosquera and other summer arrival Piero Hincapié are likely candidates to replace the Brazilian against Spurs.

There are also concerns over whether striker Viktor Gyökeres will recover to play up front after sitting out Arsenal's last two matches before the international break due to a muscle injury.

Meanwhile, German coach Nagelsmann stated that Kai Havertz has suffered a “slight setback” during his comeback from a knee injury.

Although Mikel Arteta had been optimistic about the player's return soon, the national team boss suggested that the German is currently likely to return by the New Year.

Team Stretched to the Limit

Arsenal saw their championship bid hurt previously by a series of fitness issues and invested significantly in the summer to strengthen the team.

But, with skipper Martin Ødegaard additionally on the injured list—along with Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli—the team is under strain significantly.