After excelling with Standard Liège's senior team, Mangala drew the interest of the French Football Federation with France under-21 manager Erick Mombaerts attending a match between Liège and Mouscron at the Stade Le Canonnier in November.
However, on 24 November, Gibbs broke a metatarsal in his right foot in Arsenal's 2–0 Champions League victory over Standard Liege as a result of a lunge from Eliaquim Mangala, sidelining him for the rest of the season.