Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhães couldn’t resist Tottenham’s cheeky attack on Richarlison after the Gunners won the north London derby against Spurs. Despite not being on the pitch, Gabriel took aim at his national team colleague after the match. The 28-year-old defender took to Instagram to share a photo of himself with Arsenal’s Player of the Month trophy, his Man of the Match Eberechi Eze shirt and a signed football.
Significantly, Gabriel, who missed the match due to an injury sustained while playing for Brazil, tagged Richarlison in his post. The move reflected Richarlison being targeted after Spurs won a pre-season friendly. Back in July, the Spurs forward posted a photo of himself winning the Player of the Match award after Tottenham’s 1-0 win over Arsenal in Hong Kong, and tagged Gabriel. In response, Gabriel shared a photo of the trio who won the Premier League Player of the Year award against Tottenham.
But now he can really twist the knife when it matters most. Gabriel watched Arsenal’s resounding victory at the Emirates and took part in the on-pitch celebrations full-time.
A hat-trick for Eze and a goal from Leandro Trossard meant that Richarlison’s impressive long-range attack was in vain. After Manchester City dropped points against Newcastle, Arsenal picked up three points against their local rivals to extend their lead at the top of the table to six points.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has praised his side’s consistency this season, but remains cautious about getting too carried away with form.
The Spaniard is keen to get his injured players back, especially key defender Gabriel, but he was full of praise for his substitutes after the latest match.
“We’re doing really well, we’re really consistent, that’s all,” Arteta told a press conference. “So when you look at the results, win or lose, the difference between the scoreline and what actually happens in the game is very small, we know that.
“Today we need players back quickly. It’s great to have Noni (Madueke) back on the pitch, but we’re still missing a lot of important players and we’re going to need everyone.
“The good news is we lost big Gabi, which is a big blow. And then Pierrot (Hincapie) came in. I think he was great from the beginning.”
