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Report: Arsenal closes in on Mustafi as Gabriel sidelined 6-8 weeks

Heino Kalis / Reuters

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Arsenal is reportedly ramping up its pursuit of defensive reinforcements by way of Valencia centre-back Shkodran Mustafi after Gabriel picked up an ankle sprain that rules him out for 6-8 weeks of action, according to David Ornstein of BBC Sport.

The Gunners have been linked with Mustafi for the past few weeks, but Ornstein says interest has been heightened after the Brazilian defender picked up his knock in a 3-2 win over Manchester City on Sunday.

With Per Mertesacker also sidelined, Arsenal will look to young newcomers like Rob Holding and Krystian Bielik to step in alongside Laurent Koscielny in the initial goings of the 2016-17 Premier League campaign.

For his part, Gabriel took to Instagram to announce the injury was not quite as bad as he had feared:

Mustafi, 24, has made 71 appearances for Los Che since joining the Spanish outfit in 2014, scoring six goals in that time. He also scored his first international goal during a match against Ukraine at Euro 2016.

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