Arsenal were held to a 2-2 draw by Spurs on Sunday and midfielder Declan Rice could only play the first 45 minutes of the match.
The summer signing has been a super success for the Gunners since his big-money move from West Ham United but his manager revealed that he’s picked up a back injury.
Arteta told the press: ‘He had some discomfort in his back, and he was telling us during the first half that he wasn’t comfortable. When we assessed him at half-time, he couldn’t continue, so we had to change him.’
Jorginho replaced the England international and the sub was majorly at fault for Tottenham’s second goal of the night.
Rice’s injury just adds to Mikel Arteta’s woes because now both of his central midfielders are out injured. Defender Jurrien Timber is sidelined with a long-term injury while Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli have also picked up knocks in recent weeks.
All of these injured players are regular starters for Arsenal which is a big headache because the North London side will face Manchester City on October 8.
Will Declan Rice and Co. miss the game vs MCFC?
The injury to Declan Rice would have been a massive setback for the Gunners manager but as per Daily Mail’s Sami Mokbel, the midfielder’s injury is not serious and Arsenal are hopeful he will not be out for a long period.
According to journalist John Cross, the other injured midfielder Thomas Partey is ahead of schedule and he is also in line to face Manchester City.
Fabio Vieira and Jorginho won’t be enough to tackle this MCFC team and even if one of Rice or Partey is available, it will be a massive selection boost for Mikel Arteta.
Martinelli is out with a hamstring injury while Trossard is recovering from a muscle injury and as per the latest rumours both of them are also on course to feature against Guardiola’s team.
Both Man City and Arsenal are undefeated in the Premier League so far and if Arteta is without four important players then City will be the overwhelming favourites to win at the Emirates Stadium. However, if people like Declan Rice and Martinelli return to full fitness then it will be a much more even game.
Before Man City come to town, Arsenal play three more games, an EFL Cup tie against Brentford, a league game vs Bournemouth and then a UCL match against Lens and we don’t think Declan Rice and the other injured players will play in these encounters. There are some whispers that Rice could feature next weekend against the Cherries but with the MCFC game around the horizon, we don’t think the Arsenal boss will risk using him against a team that is 17th on the league table.
The Lens and Brentford matches won’t worry the Arsenal manager too much either and his primary focus will be on keeping his current players injury-free before the all-important game on the 8th of October.
