Arsenal have reportedly suffered a major injury blow just hours before beginning their Premier League title defence, with £75million summer signing Bruno Guimaraes potentially facing several weeks on the sidelines.
Guimaraes had already emerged as a doubt for Friday night’s opener against Coventry City after being withdrawn at half-time during Arsenal’s 3-0 Community Shield victory over Manchester City.
The Brazilian was subsequently pictured on the bench with ice strapped around his right thigh.
ReadArsenal reported on Thursday that Mikel Arteta was refusing to rule Guimaraes out against Coventry, with the midfielder said to be progressing well.
The outlook now appears considerably more concerning.
Bruno Guimarães will miss Arsenal’s game against Coventry City with an injury, per multiple reports 🤕 pic.twitter.com/8ZLHfQqNjD
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) August 21, 2026
Bruno Guimaraes injury could keep Arsenal signing out for weeks
The Sun reports, citing Telegraph journalist Luke Edwards, that Guimaraes has suffered an injury at the beginning of his Arsenal career and could be unavailable for a few weeks.
The exact length of his absence has not yet been established.
That distinction is important, with Arsenal yet to officially provide a diagnosis or recovery timeframe.
Guimaraes nevertheless now appears highly unlikely to feature against Coventry.
His absence would be particularly frustrating given Arsenal only completed the £75m signing from Newcastle United earlier this month.
Arteta recruited the 28-year-old to add another proven Premier League option to a midfield already containing Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Martin Odegaard and Myles Lewis-Skelly.
That depth could immediately become important.
Rice has been carefully reintegrated following his World Cup workload, while Arteta revealed this week that Arsenal are also determined to avoid overusing Zubimendi after the Spaniard reached 55 appearances last season.
For tonight, Arsenal’s latest Coventry team-news picture will now centre on how Arteta reshapes his midfield without one of his marquee summer additions.
Arsenal invested £75m to make Guimaraes a major part of their title defence.
They may now have to begin it without him.
Arsenal owners set new trophy target as title defence begins
Arsenal owners set new trophy target as title defence begins
Mikel Arteta expected to sign new three-year Arsenal deal after title triumph
Mikel Arteta expected to sign new three-year Arsenal deal after title triumph