Originally slated for 3pm next Saturday, it was announced last month that the Premier League fixture at the Gtech Community Stadium had been selected for live coverage and as a result was moved to 5.30pm to allow it to be broadcast by TNT Sports in the evening slot.
Whilst the change shouldn't affect the travel plans of supporters who are based in the capital, the rearranged kick-off time doesn't necessarily help the Gunners' Brazilian contingent, in particular, because of the 16 senior players - currently at the club - selected for international duty, there's no denying that Gabriel Magalhaes, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli have the longest trips.
With Brazil back in action against Argentina in the early hours on Wednesday morning (UK time) it's safe to assume the aforementioned trio will be among the final batch of Arsenal players to return from international duty when Mikel Arteta is reunited with his squad at London Colney.
This isn't anything new for the Spaniard though. He's had to deal with the situation twice already this season and he admitted ahead of the Everton game back in September that his plans for the trip to Goodison Park were affected by having less time with his stars on the training pitch.
"Today is the first time that we can do a little bit because for some players it was a lot to do as well," Arteta said in the pre-match press conference on the Friday. "So it's just managing that, we knew that from the start. Don't try to give them too much information and make sure that everybody is clear on what we're doing, why we're doing it and our way of playing. That's it."Whilst the Brazilian trio did not have too much time to prepare for Arsenal's afternoon kick-off that Sunday, they did benefit from an extra day's rest as a result of the game being rescheduled. Ultimately it was Gabriel and Martinelli who started on Merseyside although the latter limped off with a hamstring injury.
However, there was no such luxury last month as the Gunners were in the Saturday evening slot once again after an international break as they mounted a spirited comeback to earn a point against Chelsea having trailed 2-0. It's the same scenario going into the Brentford game and that's despite their penultimate Champions League group game against RC Lens taking place a week on Wednesday.
The scheduling will only affect Gabriel, Martinelli and Jesus because Brazil are in action against Argentina in Rio de Janeiro in the early hours on Wednesday (UK time), but the likes of William Saliba, Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Takehiro Tomiyasu should wrap up their international commitments by Tuesday at the latest.
Regardless of whether any of the Gabriels feature in the World Cup qualifier, the long journeys back to England in addition to being among the last to return from international duty will take its toll and they won't have the luxury of an extra day's rest ahead of the London derby.
How this impacts Arteta's team selection vs Brentford remains to be seen. Having said that, he should have Jakub Kiwior and Tomiyasu on standby if there are any issues with Gabriel. Furthermore, Leandro Trossard and Eddie Nketiah are options in attack if Jesus and Martinelli aren't ready to start.
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