According to The Athletic, Max Dowman is set to miss a couple of months after sustaining ankle ligament damage during Arsenal’s behind-closed-doors friendly win over Manchester United.
While he thankfully doesn’t need surgery, the irony of losing a player in a match arranged to help others regain fitness isn’t lost on anyone.
The 15-year-old has been a genuine member of Mikel Arteta’s first-team group this season and now joins Cristhian Mosquera, Big Gabi, William Saliba, Kai Havertz and Leandro Trossard on the injury list. Declan Rice is also unwell.
Asked about the strain injuries are putting on the squad, Arteta said last night: “Yeah, a big one. I mean, losing Max again, it’s obviously not ideal with Leo, who is just coming back, that we have to manage the minutes.
“Willy is still not there. We’ve not got Big Gabi, and we have other players that they could only play certain minutes. Like, for example, Riccy [Calafiori] the other day. But it’s a situation that we have managed since the beginning of the season. We are in December, so it’s been almost five months in a remarkable way, and we’re going to continue.”
Given Dowman’s dribble-heavy style, it’s no surprise he’s taken a heavy blow to the ankle. As seen earlier in the season with England under-19s, he attracts rough challenges from frustrated opponents but usually rides them well. The hope is that this sort of setback doesn’t become a pattern; memories of Jack Wilshere’s early injuries spring quickly to mind.
Arteta, though, is keeping the focus on development rather than worry: “It’s part of the journey. I mean, at some point when you play at this level, when you play in the position that he plays, the manner that he plays, it was going to happen and it happened. One, that, OK, it’s not ideal, it will be a weeks, it could have been worse.
“Learn from it and use this time now to continue improving in his education, in everything related to professional football, his habits, the way he needs to develop his physicality, and his understanding of the game.
“Sometimes when you’re away from the game, you say, ‘I cannot really live without it, and how important it is.’ So use those moments as well to get a reflection of where you are as well, and if you are better, of course, go forward.”
If there’s a positive, Dowman’s absence has allowed Arsenal to register Gabriel Jesus in their Champions League squad for the final three group games.
“Gabi has been pushing every single day,” revealed Arteta. “He kept telling everybody ‘I am going to be earlier, earlier, earlier’ and he has done it. So thanks to his work and all the work that the medical staff have done in all these months, and we had the possibility to make a swap there and we have done it.
“Yes, on one side, you see Max and his situation and on the other, you see the joy and how happy Gabi is to be back in the Champions League.”