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The Brazilian was expected to be part of the Gunners’ contingent to Portugal.
Gabriel Jesus could not travel with Arsenal to Lisbon for their Europa League match after the club made a decision to return to London on Thursday night.
The Gunners had been due to stay overnight in the Portuguese capital and train there after their midweek clash against Sporting Lisbon. But the plans changed, and they flew back home on Thursday night instead.
The change saw Gabriel miss the Lisbon trip, as he was due to travel and train with his teammates in Lisbon on Friday, according to the Evening Standard.
The Brazilian, who has been sidelined by a knee injury since December, is working his way back, but Sunday’s match against Fulham could come early for him.
"We lost Eddie [Nketiah] as well, so it’s much more important to have Gabi back," said Granit Xhaka as he stressed the need to have the striker back.
"Step by step, I hope that Gabi will be 100 percent fit to help this team because we know that he can help us. With his attitude, and his personality, he is very, very important for us."
The former Manchester City forward is yet to feature for Arsenal since November, but his return to training last week – after his January surgery - is positive news for him and the club.
Meanwhile, manager Mikel Arteta will hope to have captain Martin Odegaard back after the midfielder missed Thursday's 2-2 draw against Sporting Lisbon. Odegaard had been feeling unwell but trained with the squad on Wednesday.
After travelling with the team, he could not play as he felt unwell again on Thursday morning.
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![[Video]: Timber show Arsenal fans what they have been missing with wonderstrike on his return](https://sportal365images.com/process/smp-images-production/ringier.africa/29112023/4916e71e-5abb-44f4-aad7-43171eb16585.jpg?operations=fit(600:))
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