Arsenal and Tottenham collide at the Emirates this afternoon in the first north London derby of the season.
The Gunners sit top of the Premier League after the final international break of 2025 with Spurs eight points behind their arch-rivals.
But injury struck again during the break for the Gunners with questions marks remaining over a number of other stars ahead of kick-off.
Gabriel Magalhaes limped out of Brazil’s friendly match against Senegal last weekend, immediately making him a doubt for the derby.
It has since been confirmed he has suffered a muscle injury in his right thigh that is expected to rule the centre-half out for at least a month.
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It serves as a huge blow at both ends of the pitch for Arsenal with the Brazilian a huge set piece threat, chipping in with two goals and three assists this term.
Cristhian Mosquera will be in the frame to come in and replace him today. The summer signing from Villarreal shone in the first-team when called upon to replace William Saliba earlier in the campaign with Piero Hincapié also an option.
Arsenal were also left sweating on the fitness of Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber during the international break. Calafiori missed Italy’s games against Moldova and Norway and had still not returned to training when Mikel Arteta spoke to the press on Friday.
Martin Odegaard, Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli were thought to be in the frame to return from injury today but Arteta was giving nothing away in front of the media.
The Arsenal boss merely hoped to have his recent absentees back with Viktor Gyokeres also in that group. The Sweden international was forced off against Burnley at the start of November, missing games against Slavia Prague and Sunderland.
Before the international break, Arteta said the club were still waiting to learn the full extent of the issue with no further updates on the striker since.
Odegaard and Madueke meanwhile have been missing since early October and late September respectively.
Kai Havertz appears to have suffered a setback in his bid to a return from a knee problem that required surgery in August.
‘Kai had a minor relapse on his injury, but overall, he’s doing well,’ Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann said this week. ‘He is expected to return towards the end of the year.’
Tottenham have injury problems of their own. Dominic Solanke, Archie Gray, Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski and Yves Bissouma remain sidelined with James Maddison still a long-term absentee.
But Thomas Frank had better news on that front on Friday. Lucas Bergvall missed his side’s last two games due to concussion protocols but is available once again.
Pape Matar Sarr was another casualty during the international break, forced off playing for Senegal against Brazil at the Emirates. He too has been passed fit along with Mohammed Kudus after missing the last two games.
Randal Kolo Muani was a doubt after picking up a jaw injury during the 2-2 draw with Manchester United that ruled him out of both of France’s World Cup qualifiers.
The forward will be wearing a protective mask but trained this week and is available for selection.
Arsenal XI to face Tottenham – Metro prediction
With Gabriel missing out, Mosquera has proved he is ready to slot in when called upon.
With Arteta relentlessly coy on the fitness of other members of his squad, there is plenty of guesswork going into our predicted line-up.
But any lingering doubts over Calafiori’s fitness could open the door for Myles Lewis-Skelly to come into the side.
Tottenham XI to face Arsenal – Metro prediction
The availability of Sarr, Bergvall and Muani is a huge boost for Spurs and all three could slot back into the team today.
Arsenal vs Tottenham TV channel and kick-off time
Arsenal vs Tottenham takes place on Sunday 23 November with kick-off scheduled for 4:30pm.
You can watch the match live on Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Main Event with streaming also available through the Sky Go app and NOW TV for subscribers.
Or you can follow all the action with Metro’s LIVE blog.