How Arsenal players performed in the Copa America 2024 group stage
- Two Arsenal players are competing at Copa America 2024
- Both Gabriel Magalhães and Gabriel Martinelli made Brazil's final 26-man squad
- Brazil finished second in Group D
Two Arsenal players are representing Brazil at Copa America 2024, but they both failed to make an impact in the group stage.
Brazil came into Copa America 2024 as one of the favorites to win the competition, just behind the reigning champions, Argentina. As the 4th ranked team in the world, Selecao had high expectations this summer, but they only managed to finish second in Group D behind Colombia.
Dorival Junior mainly stuck to his favored starting XI for the group stage fixtures, meaning the two Gunners on the squad were not given many (or any, really) opportunities to shine for their country.
How Arsenal players performed in the Copa America 2024 group stage
Gabriel Magalhães (Brazil)
Matches | Minutes | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Gabriel Magalhães was one half of the best center-back pairing in the Premier League this past season, keeping 15 clean sheets for Arsenal alongside France's William Saliba. The defender suffered a shoulder injury against Everton in the last match of the 2023/24 season, but he fully recovered and traveled with Brazil to the United States for the Copa America this summer.
Despite his prolific season for the Gunners, Gabriel only made one appearance for Brazil in the Copa America 2024 group stage. The 26-year-old came on as a substitute against Paraguay in the 87th minute when his team was already up 4-1.
Needless to say, Gabriel has not had much to do for Brazil at Copa America 2024. PSG's Marquinhos and Real Madrid's Eder Militao are the preferred starters for Dorival Junior, and Gabriel will continue to watch from the bench in the knockout rounds.
Gabriel Martinelli (Brazil)
Matches | Minutes | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Gabriel Martinelli had an up and down year for Arsenal. The winger scored eight goals and tallied five assists across all competitions before he lost his starting spot to Leandro Trossard. From March on, Martinelli only averaged 26 minutes per match in the Premier League, and failed to record any goals or assists in the Gunners' final ten fixtures.
Martinelli's inconsistent year did not do him any favors ahead of Copa America 2024. He would never start over Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr. on the left wing, but he could have gotten some crucial minutes on the right, especially after Raphinha's lackluster performances in two of Brazil's three matches.
Instead, the 23-year old is stuck in a similar situation as his Arsenal teammate, Gabriel. Martinelli only came on in one of Brazil's group stage matches this summer, playing just seven minutes against Costa Rica, and failed to make an impression that would earn him more playing time.