FC Bayern München v Arsenal FC - UEFA Champions League 2026/27 League Phase MD3
Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Arsenal have had their fair share of injury bad luck this season, and some of it has come in the strangest circumstances.
After the win over Leeds earlier this month, Piero Hincapie and Martin Zubimendi both picked up ankle injuries in the post-match warm-down, with the former carried off. Then on Wednesday night, Bukayo Saka was forced off with a quad injury inside 10 minutes of the 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich.
Saka joins Christos Tzolis on the sidelines, leaving Mikel Arteta’s attacking options rather thin, while William Saliba has been out since the World Cup. As it turns out, Arsenal had another scare before a ball had even been kicked in Munich.
Ben White accidentally hurt Max Dowman in the warm-up
According to football.london, Ben White and Max Dowman were having a light-hearted battle on the pitch at the Allianz Arena during the warm-up. White was shielding the ball from the 16-year-old when he accidentally stepped on his foot with his studs.
Dowman laughed at first but then started hopping around, clearly in some pain. Thankfully, he was fine to continue, and the pair were soon laughing and joking again as they finished their preparations.
The two are said to have a big brother, little brother kind of relationship. White likes to wind the youngster up, and Dowman always comes back for more. Neither player came off the bench against Bayern.
Given Arsenal’s recent run of bad luck, it’s the last thing anyone would have wanted to see, especially now. With Arsenal so short out wide, Dowman was the only natural wide option on the bench in Munich apart from Eberechi Eze. He has played just 14 minutes in the Premier League and Champions League combined this season, but given Arteta’s options now, he could be called upon a lot more in the coming weeks.