Riccardo Calafiori was absent against Brighton.placeholder image
Riccardo Calafiori was absent against Brighton. | Getty Images
Mikel Arteta was without two key defensive stars for the clash with Brighton on Saturday afternoon.
Arsenal picked up another important three points with a 2-1 win over Brighton on Saturday afternoon, returning to the top of the Premier League after Manchester City tasted victory earlier today, but it’s not all good news for the Gunners this weekend.
Mikel Arteta had named Riccardo Calafiori in his starting XI to take on the Seagulls but the versatile defender was forced to withdraw from the team prior to kick-off. Gabriel Martinelli and Piero Hincapie did return from injury but the latest blow comes at an awful time with a big clash against Aston Villa next week.
LondonWorld looks at the latest Arsenal injury news as the busy festive fixture period takes its toll on the Gunners first team stars.
Riccardo Calafiori
Arsenal were handed another blow in the warm up prior to taking on Brighton on Saturday afternoon with Riccardo Calafiori picking up a problem before kick-off. The Italy international was initially named in the team by Mikel Arteta but ended up being replaced by Martin Lewis-Skelly before the start of the clash.
The Gunners will wait to hear from Mikel Arteta about that problem. Calafiori had only missed one Premier League match this season prior to today, sitting out against Wolves due to suspension.
Jurrien Timber
Jurrien Timber was another high profile name absent against Brighton, leaving a gap to be filled in the back four. The 24-year-old arrived at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday but was not named in the matchday squad.
Arteta admitted that Timber had picked up a knock in the Carabao Cup win over Crystal Palace, despite completing the game and scoring his penalty. The defender should return against Aston Villa.
Gabriel Magalhães
Arsenal had been without the services of defensive stalwart Gabriel since early November but the centre-back returned to the matchday squad for the meeting with Brighton. The 28-year-old had been dealing with an abductor injury.
Gabriel had been spotted with the squad on their pre-match walk this morning and was then named on the bench. The centre-back came on around the 70 minute mark after Arsenal conceded against the Seagulls, replacing Myles Lewis-Skelly, and appeared to make it through the closing stages unscathed.
Kai Havertz
Kai Havertz has been a sore miss for Arsenal up front with the German sidelined with a knee injury picked up in the first match of the season against Manchester United. The forward is back in Gunners first team training and it had been hoped he could make a comeback against Brighton.
However, unlike Gabriel, Havertz was not named in the matchday squad and he may have to wait until the visit of Aston Villa next week. Speaking ahead of facing Brighton, Arteta said: “I think it will be a matter of days, not weeks. Let’s see in the next steps how he responds to that. But he is, again, a player that we missed a lot, a player that brings the team into a different dimension. So, I am really happy to have him back soon.”
Cristhian Mosquera
The new defensive injuries come at a bad time with Cristian Mosquera injured with an ankle injury. The centre-back came off against Brentford due to that blow and tests revealed it to be worse than first thought.
At the time, Arteta said: “He's going to be out for weeks. Unfortunately, it's much more than what we expected, the way he was feeling. So, he's going to be out for weeks."
Ben White
Ben White has not been afforded many minutes for Arsenal this season, having fallen down the pecking order. When called upon, the former Brighton man has stood up to the task, with a particularly impressive outings against Brentford.
White then picked up a hamstring injury against Wolves. Initially, it was feared the defender could be facing a lengthy lay-off but that is now not thought to be so serious. Arteta hopes to have White back ‘in the next few games’.
Max Dowman
Max Dowman’s breakthrough season has been halted by an ankle ligament injury. Frustratingly, that injury was picked up in a behind-closed-doors friendly outing against Manchester United earlier this month.
The 15-year-old is not expected to need surgery but has been replaced in the Champions League squad. Dowman is not expected back until mid February.
In other news, Paul Merson and Chris Sutton make Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham predictions as 'do-or-die' claim made.
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