Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed a lengthy injury for Piero Hincapie following the 3-0 Champions League win over Lille at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners picked up a resounding win over Lille yesterday. They were kept quiet until the 64th minute before three quick-fire goals put the result beyond sight.
Speaking after the game, Arteta covered different topics, including the fitness of Hincapie and Martin Zubimendi, who picked up ankle injuries last weekend.
The pair sustained the setback during a warm-down session after the Leeds United game on Saturday and were ruled out for Lille’s visit yesterday.
Arteta has now clarified that Zubimendi is feeling much better and he could be involved pretty soon.
However, the Spaniard acknowledged that Hincapie’s concern is ‘more significant’, and it will be a ‘matter of weeks’, though he could not confirm the exact timescale.
He said: “Zubi is much, much better. Piero is improving, but it looks more significant – I think it will be a matter of weeks, but we don’t know exactly how many. We have to see with Zubi how he deals with the pain on the pitch and the feelings he will face.”
Hincapie has had a tough start to the season. The left-back has played just over 160 minutes and was recently left out of the Ecuadorian squad to recover from a minor groin injury.
The £34.5 million signing made his first competitive appearance in a month as a substitute against Leeds, but unfortunately sustained an ankle sprain in the warm-down session.
Riccardo Calafiori remains the undisputed left-back in the Premier League, but Hincapie would have surely started yesterday if not for the untimely injury blow last weekend.
To manage Calafiori’s workload, Arteta went with Myles Lewis-Skelly in the position yesterday. We can fully expect the Italian to be reinstated for the league trip to Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Hopefully, Hincapie can return as soon as possible.
Zubimendi has likewise endured a difficult start to the season. He has made just one start in the Carabao Cup third-round victory at Ipswich Town, which came as an emergency right-back.
The 27-year-old will be frustrated with the lack of regular game time. He is no longer an assured starter with Declan Rice, Bruno Guimaraes, Lewis-Skelly and Mikel Merino ahead of him in the pecking order.
Zubimendi could return to the matchday squad this weekend, but the Real Sociedad graduate is likely to be limited to a cameo appearance, which has mostly been the case for him this campaign.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com