Thomas Partey's spell on the sidelines through injury could open the door for Mikel Arteta to press ahead with his plans to integrate Miguel Azeez into the Arsenal first-team squad.
Whilst it's not yet known how long the Ghana international will be out of action with the thigh problem sustained against Crystal Palace on Monday night which ruled him out of Saturday's defeat at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion, if last season is any indicator then he is facing up to six weeks on the sidelines which means his campaign could be over.
This is in relation to the length of time it took Partey to return for the Gunners after suffering a similar injury in the North London Derby loss against Tottenham Hotspur in December 2020 as he ended up missing 10 games in total and it took him a while to regain his match sharpness.
