Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed that Gabriel Jesus and Thomas Partey are set for a period on the sidelines.
Since returning from international duty with Ghana, Partey has yet to feature for Arsenal and was not part of the squad that travelled to Spain for Tuesday’s Champions League victory over Sevilla.
Jesus grabbed a goal and an assist in the aforementioned game but had to come off 10 minutes to the end with a muscle problem.
Speaking after the game in midweek, Jesus declared that there was nothing to worry about regarding his injury status but his manager has now confirmed otherwise.
“Yeah, again, the scan showed that there is a muscle injury and we might lose him [Partey] for a few weeks again,” Arteta said in his press conference as quoted by football.london.
“He’s got a muscle injury and we expect him to be out for a few weeks – he picked up that injury with the last kick of the ball, so it is very unfortunate.
“With Gabby, I cannot give you any timeframe as he always surprises us.”
Losing Jesus and Partey is a big blow for Arsenal as they bid to mount another title challenge off the back of last season’s second-place finish.
In Jesus’ absence, Eddie Nketiah is expected to get the nod to lead the line, while Jorginho is set to be the biggest beneficiary of Partey’s extended spell out of action.
Off the back of a 2-2 draw against city rivals Chelsea in their last league encounter, Arsenal set out to return to winning ways this weekend when they welcome Sheffield United to the Emirates Stadium.
