Gabriel Martinelli is set to miss more than a month of action with a hamstring injury, with his participation in Arsenal’s last-16 Champions League tie in doubt.
David Ornstein reports for The Athletic that Arsenal winger Gabriel Martinelli is facing more than a month on the sidelines with the hamstring injury he suffered against Newcastle United earlier this week.
At the very least, Martinelli is set to miss Arsenal’s Premier League games against Leicester City, West Ham United, and Nottingham Forest this month, but he’s also a doubt for the March games against Manchester United, Chelsea, and in the Champions League last-16.
The only good news is that there’s no suggestion the player is out for the season, and he should definitely be back for April and May. It’s just a question of whether he plays any role before the March international break.
Arsenal’s first game in March is the Champions League first-leg game away from home against either Feyenoord, Juventus, AC Milan, or PSV, depending on the results of the play-off round and the subsequent draw.
If Martinelli really is out for “more than a month”, as predicted, that game on March 4th/5th would come too soon. The winger’s earliest possible return date would be the subsequent game against Manchester United.
Ethan Nwaneri is likely to play an increased role in Martinelli’s absence, as well as Raheem Sterling. Those are the two main candidates for the right-wing position now, and Sterling will probably have to provide cover for Leandro Trossard on the left as well.
Another likely consequence of the injury is Kieran Tierney playing a more advanced role if and when he’s involved. We’ve already seen him come on as a winger in a couple of his substitute appearances, and that’s now likely to continue.
Martinelli and Bukayo Saka appear to have similar return dates now, with Saka also hoping to return for the March games but perhaps more likely to be back in time for the Fulham fixture on April 1st.
The pair were once the driving force behind Mikel Arteta’s attack, but he’ll now have to do without both of them for a while.