Gabriel had heartwarming reason for missing World Cup and showed true colours

12 July 2023 , 08:43

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Gabriel had heartwarming reason for missing World Cup and showed true colours

Arsenal star Gabriel Magalhaes believes he missed out on the World Cup with Brazil after prioritising his son’s birth over playing in qualifying matches.

Gabriel was not part of the Selecao squad, with Tite preferring to select Chelsea ’s Thiago Silva, Paris Saint-Germain’s Marquinhos, Real Madrid ’s Eder Militao and Juventus ’ Bremer as central defenders. Surprisingly, Gabriel has never been capped at senior level by Brazil despite playing for the under-20s and under-23s.

But he was in contention last year as Tite considered his options for Qatar. However, Gabriel chose to stay in London for the birth of his son, ruling himself out of qualifiers against Bolivia and Chile.

He thinks that choice ended his World Cup dream, telling GE, via ESPN : “These are choices. I went through it. My son was born, I was waiting in England and the next day I came to Brazil because I had injured my knee and needed to recover as quickly as possible. My wife stayed there for 40 days alone, with the help of a nanny.”

Gabriel Magalhaes is yet to play for Brazil (David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

While Gabriel missed out, his Arsenal team-mates Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus did make the squad for Qatar. The 25-year-old was happy for his team-mates, but was understandably upset at his own misfortune.

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“I was definitely sad. It's normal for an athlete, even more so for having been in the group and then missing the last call-up,” he told ESPN Brazil in January. “I had my family close by, and at Arsenal everyone talked to me.

“I have a strong mind and I'm a family person. I managed to digest that well, it's part of football. I'll keep working and I know there are other World Cups ahead of me. I'll work to be there.”

Gabriel Magalhaes was gutted to miss the World Cup (ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)

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Gabriel is yet to be capped for Brazil, with Militao and Marquinhos the first-choice pairing for the most recent friendlies against Guinea and Senegal in June. Instead, Gabriel remains focused on competing for Arsenal after rumours of a move to Juventus faded.

He enjoyed a strong partnership with William Saliba last season and will be hoping to rekindle the understanding now the Frenchman is back fit. The Gunners are currently in Germany, where they will play Nurnberg in a friendly, before heading on a pre-season tour of the United States.

First they will play MLS All Stars at Audi Field, Washington DC, on July 20, before facing Manchester United in the MetLife Stadium, New York, on July 22, and Barcelona at the SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles, on July 26.

After signing Kai Havertz from Chelsea for £65million, fans are now awaiting confirmation of Jurrien Timber’s £38m move from Ajax and Declan Rice ’s £105m transfer from West Ham.

Felix Keith