The Gameweek 18 Scout Notes continue with Arsenal 2-1 Brighton and Hove Albion.
WOOD + CALAFIORI INJURY LATEST – AND WHY WE DON’T EXPECT AN UPDATE
In a rollercoaster afternoon for Arsenal defender owners, two flagged players recovered and two unflagged teammates missed!
Piero Hincapie (£5.5m) took into account midweek injury at the start and final 90 minutes Gabriel Magalhaes (£6.2m) appeared as a second-half substitute earlier than expected.
Masses were Jurriën Hout (£6.5 million) and Riccardo Calafiori (£5.7m), who, it turns out, suffered injuries in training yesterday – three days after Mikel Arteta’s pre-match presser. Calafiori went so far as to be included in the line-up for the match against Brighton, but withdrew during the warm-up.
“Yesterday we lost Jurrien, today we lost Calafiori in the warm-up.
‘He ended up awkwardly with Jurrien, and there is also something about Ricci, very, very strange.
“It’s something that [Calafiori] Yesterday something felt very uncomfortable and today during the warm-up he felt uncomfortable.” – Mikel Arteta
Two new (and well-cherished) doubts before the crucial clash against Aston Villa on Tuesday. Unfortunately for Timber and Calafiori owners, we probably won’t get many updates from Mikel Arteta ahead of Gameweek 19 (when will we?). Why? Because the Arsenal boss, like many of his colleagues, filmed his Gameweek 19 press conference today, with quotes embargoed until Monday (midday in Arteta’s case). So whatever quotes emerge at that stage are unlikely to be much more illuminating than what we’ve already heard.
GABRIEL RETURN
He’s back.
As mentioned above, Gabriel – who had yet to resume training when Arteta faced the media on Tuesday and underlined the limited value of press conferences over Christmas – came on the bench against the Seagulls.
Introduced for the booked Myles Lewis-Skelly (£5.1 million) in the 71st minute he reunited with William Saliba (£5.9m) in the center half. Hincapie moved to left back.
So now the race to buy it again.
He averages more FPL points per start (7.4) than any other defender in 2025/26, at least those who have made more than one starting XI. For most of us it’s a matter of when, not if.
The direct fixtures aren’t great; an in-form Aston Villa and a crazy Liverpool side who, despite their shortcomings, have scored in 16 of their 18 league games this season, come in the next three matchweeks. Gameweek 22 could be the optimal hop-on point; others may not want to wait that long.
Even without Gabriel, Arsenal have been unlucky not to record more than two clean sheets during his seven-game absence from the first XI:
Above: Premier League teams sorted by expected goals conceded (xGC) since Gabriel was injured
The Gunners were extremely dominant against Brighton on Saturday, not conceding a single shot in the first half. While Diego Gomes‘S ( £4.9m ) consolation made for a nervy finish, and David Raya (£6.0m) had to make a sensational save to maintain a 2–1 lead, the score flattering the Seagulls.
With Gabriel strengthening the backline, could Arsenal’s defensive double-up/triple-up get underway again soon?
SAKA A THREAT, AGAIN – AND RICE MATCHES WITH HIM AGAIN
Moving on, it was basically rinse and repeat from previous weeks. Bukayo Saka (£10.3 million) was again the main source of threat and the underlying figures were leader, but Declan Rice (£7.2m) again largely matched him in terms of FPL output.
Saka got a few extra bonus points, but otherwise it was another win apiece.
Above: Arsenal players sorted by chance involvement % on Saturday
Saka had more shots (seven) than any Premier League player on Saturday. Meanwhile alone Martin Odegaard (£7.8m) created more chances than the winger (four). Odegaard completed one of those important passes to give Arsenal a 1-0 lead.
Saka tested Bart Verbruggen (£4.4m) early from a tight angle from seven yards, while late he took too long with a one-on-one. A disappointment in between Viktor Gyokeres (£8.8m) should have nodded at Saka’s wayward shot, while Gabriel Martinelli (£6.8m) shone over the England international’s low cross.
There are more points on the table, with the nagging feeling that a megahaul is coming soon. It hasn’t arrived yet, and in the meantime, Rice keeps ticking. This week’s lucky assist, following on from last week’s, saw George Rutte (£5.6m) nod in Rice’s corner.
In Timber’s absence, Rice was at right back on Saturday.
HURZELER ON THE BENCH OF MINTEH, MITOMA’S ABSENCE + WELBECK’S FITNESS
Brighton came into this game late in the second half, with Gomez’s goal injecting some life into the visitors. It was Yankuba Minteh (£6.0m) who pulled off the world-class save from Raya, while Mats Wieffer (£4.9m) nodded through a good chance a minute later.
Both Minteh and Wieffer were among the substitutes on Saturday. It seemed like a tactical decision: Fabian Hurzeler went for a 3-4-2-1, which neither player really fits into. You’d naturally expect a more attacking system in Gameweeks 19 and 20, plus returns for these two.
That said, the Brighton boss sounded pretty chill on Minteh’s bench after a full-time stint.
“I think the first decision was to make sure that everyone who plays deserves to play.” – Fabian Hurzeler, when asked why Yankuba Minteh was on the bench
As for banking Danny Welbeck (£6.3 million) and the no-show of Kaoru Mitoma (£6.1 million), both were fitness related.
“It’s a balancing act because it’s very difficult. He’s not training fully and I think Danny Welbeck has to be fully fit to really help us. We have to balance it, we have to adapt him, we have to understand what helps him and then hopefully we can get him back to his best form.” – Fabian Hurzeler on Danny Welbeck
‘He was sick.
“I don’t think it’s long-term, so I hope he’ll be back on Tuesday.” – Fabian Hurzeler about Kaoru Mitoma
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