A fresh injury blow for Arsenal’s growing list arrived on the weekend with Gabriel Martinelli their newest worry.
The Brazilian went off early in the defeat to Brighton, before being spotted in a protective boot at the Emirates Stadium.
The news adds to Arsenal’s absentees for the final weeks of the season, with Oleksandr Zinchenko struck down ahead of the game.
William Saliba looks to have lost his battle to play again before the summer, as have Takehiro Tomiyasu and Mohamed Elneny.
Here is your latest update of Arsenal injuries and return dates...
Gabriel Martinelli
The Brazilian forward last only 19 minutes of Sunday’s clash with Brighton after a sturdy challenge from Felipe Caicedo forced him off with an injury.
Standard Sport understand Martinelli will undergo scans on the issue in the coming days, while the squad have been given Monday off. He is therefore a doubt at least for the upcoming trip to Nottingham Forest.
“We don’t know,” Mikel Arteta admitted. “He’s in a [protective] boot at the moment. He was very uncomfortable, and he could not carry on playing. We need to scan him and see the extent of that injury.”
Arsenal club doctor Gary O’Driscoll has stated that Martinelli should be back before the end of the season.
William Saliba
Arteta has knocked back reports, among them by Standard Sport, that Saliba is definitely ruled out for the season.
The French defender has struggled to overcome a back injury in recent weeks, having suffered the issue against Sporting CP in March. A key concern is rushing Saliba back and aggravating the problem.
“With William, it’s for sure that he’s not going to be fit for this game and we are doubting whether he will be fit for the next game as well,” he said last week.
“But we want to keep the hope going and make sure that we give ourselves the best chance of having them back.”
Oleksandr Zinchenko
Likewise, the Arsenal boss has remained optimistic about Zinchenko’s chance of a return despite his reported absence for the final weeks.
A calf injury kept him out against Brighton, with Kieran Tierney deputising at left-back.
Zinchenko came off in the second half of the recent win at Newcastle after picking up the issue.
Takehiro Tomiyasu
A knee injury will keep Tomiyasu out for the rest of the season, and potentially into next campaign as well.
Arteta recently admitted that the full-back could be looking at a “six-month” return timeframe after surgery on the complaint, picked up in the Europa League encounter with Sporting.
Mohamed Elneny
Elneny is back in light training after an operation on a knee issue in late January.
However, he is not expected to be near to a return to playing until the start of pre-season - a target return date he is on track to meet.
