Ben White will miss the rest of the season for Arsenal, after suffering an injury in the first half of the Gunners' 1-0 win over West Ham United in the Premier League.
What injury did he suffer?
White suffered a Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) injury in the 28th minute, having come off worse in a 50/50 challenge for the ball with West Ham's Crysencio Summerville.
The severity of the injury is unknown, but it is known to be severe enough to keep him out for the rest of the season.
Arsenal statement
Following the news that White would miss the rest of the season, Arsenal released a statement on the full back, which read,
"Further to Sunday’s match atWest Ham United, subsequent assessments and specialist reviews have confirmed that Ben White has sustained a significant medial knee ligament injury, which will rule him out for the remainder of this season.
Our medical team are now managing Ben’s recovery and rehabilitation programme, with everyone fully focused on supporting the aim of Ben being ready for the start of our pre-season preparations."
Right back woes for the Gunners
Right back has been a position in which Arsenal have struggled with due to injury in recent months.
White has played 13 out of the last 14 games, with the second leg against Sporting CP in the Champions League the outlier.
Jurrien Timber would usually be the first choice, but he is still recovering from a groin injury which he suffered during the first half of Arsenal's 2-0 win over Everton, meaning that he has missed the last 12 games.
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Cristian Mosquera is the only right-back really available for Mikel Arteta to choose from; even then, it is not his first-choice position.
It is quite an issue for Arteta, considering the Champions League Final is only three weeks away, and either Timber or Mosquera will likely be up against the formidbale task of stopping PSG's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
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Thomas Tuchel made a decision to recall Ben White into the England setup for the recent March internationals, the first time the fullback had played for his country since the 2022 World Cup.
Reece James is now expected to be the first choice in that position, having fully recovered from his injury and returned to Chelsea.
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Newcastle's Tino Livramento suffered a thigh injury in a 2-1 home defeat against Bournemouth on April 18th. Eddie Howe confirmed this week that he would miss the rest of the Premier League season, though he would be expected to recover in time for the World Cup
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The big question mark is whether it allows a way into the setup for Trent Alexander-Arnold.
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Tuchel has named him in the provisional 55-man squad which nations needed to submit to FIFA by Monday, 11th May.
The Madrid full-back has not played for the Three Lions since June 2025, in a qualifer against Andorra.
Logically, he would be the most adequate replacement for Ben White, though it remains to be seen what Tuchel does.