Arsenal right-back Ben White has suffered a new minor injury, and the Gunners may have a "big decision" to make regarding his future, Charles Watts has told Sports Mole.
The Englishman was back on the bench for the weekend's 3-0 Premier League win over Nottingham Forest, having seemingly recovered from the knock that he sustained in the opening-day victory at Manchester United, but he was nowhere to be seen on Tuesday night.
Prior to the 2-0 Champions League victory at Athletic Bilbao, Mikel Arteta confirmed that White would be absent from the match, without giving any further details over whether the 27-year-old had indeed picked up a fresh concern or if his minutes were simply being managed.
However, Watts has revealed that White has indeed sustained a new issue, and while he refused to go as far as saying that the club will offload the defender due to his repeated concerns, he believes that a major call will have to be made if he cannot shake off his perpetual concerns.
Asked if White's new issue was a serious worry, Watts replied: “It really really is, because of the sheer amount of minutes that Jurrien Timber is having to play at the moment and had to play last season, eventually he broke down because of that.
“When you saw Ben White training from the start, it was so nice to have that option. You can rotate 60 minutes one week, 60 minutes another week. Two players different in terms of how they play, but real high quality.
“Arsenal are just saying this is a minor issue. They're not saying what it is, or I certainly haven't been told. It’s a concern for Ben White, but it's also a big one for Jurrien Timber. They need to find a way of keeping Ben White fit. I know it's easier said than done when you're not a medical person, but it'll be a growing concern for Mikel Arteta, who puts so much emphasis on availability.
Watts: 'Ben White cannot carry on like this'
Arsenal defender Ben White on September 22, 2024
“I'm sure Mikel's going to be thinking, how long can this continue? I'm not sitting here saying now Ben White's going to get sold, but if he has another season like last season, Arsenal are going to have a big decision to make. He can't carry on like this.”
White was restricted to 26 appearances in all competitions last season - including 13 Premier League starts - due to a number of injury blows, the most debilitating being a serious knee injury that required surgery in November and sidelined him for three months.
Owing to Takehiro Tomiyasu's own perpetual problems - which eventually led to the Japan international's contract being terminated - Jurrien Timber was afforded little respite, making 48 appearances in the 2024-25 season after tearing his ACL the year before.
The Dutchman eventually suffered a damaging ankle injury - which required surgery - towards the end of the season, and while he is Arsenal's only other out-and-out right-back, the impressive Cristhian Mosquera can also be deployed in that role.
Gunners legend Nigel Winterburn also recently suggested that Myles Lewis-Skelly could be played at right-back while Riccardo Calafiori is nailed on at left-back, but Watts cannot see the teenager being happy with swapping sides.
“It's a possible solution! Whether it's viable, I don't really know, I've never seen him play right-back," he added. "He’s a very good footballer, the way he's taken from being moved to left back with such ease shows he's more than capable of playing in positions that he's not used to.
“I'm sure if you ask Myles Lewis-Skelly, his answer would probably be ‘no thanks’! We did see Calafiori play right-back a couple of times last season, but that's the sort of thing you don't want to be turning to. Mosquera is definitely the third option if there's no Timber, no White; that kind of Thomas Partey option.
“But then you get down to the options that you don't really want to be considering. And that's why Ben White's injury is such a concern because you just don't want to be thinking about who can we shift over to that position? It's not great thinking about those prospects.”
Is 19-year-old Josh Nichols ready to play for Arsenal?
Arsenal's Ethan Nwaneri and Joshua Nichols celebrate on September 25, 2024
Arteta does have another genuine right-back option available to him, albeit one he has been loath to use in Joshua Nichols, the 19-year-old Hale End academy product.
Nichols made his senior Arsenal debut in last year's 5-1 EFL Cup win over Bolton Wanderers - completing the full 90 minutes in that third-round success - but he has not played for the first team since, only being an unused substitute in the Premier League.
The 2006-born defender has also been solely used at youth level so far this term, and Watts does not expect Arteta to call on Nichols, whom the Arsenal journalist expected to be sent out on loan in the summer.
“Mikel was asked about him in a press conference a couple of weeks ago," he added. "The answer he gave was that he’s a good player, but it didn't sound like an answer from someone who really believed that he was an option.
“He played well in that game against Bolton, we've seen him in pre-season as well at times. He looks like a tidy player, but it'd be a big ask throwing him in.
“I'm surprised he didn't go on loan this summer. This was a perfect summer for him to get some experience at senior football. I'd be surprised if that was an avenue Arsenal went down with him at this stage.”
Nichols will nevertheless push for a second senior appearance in next week's EFL Cup clash with Port Vale, but Timber is a certainty to start this weekend's mouthwatering Premier League battle with Manchester City at the Emirates.
> Click here to listen to the full discussion on Ben White's latest injury blow
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