Bukayo Saka will be out for “many weeks” with injury, according to Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, in a big blow to one of Liverpool’s main title rivals.
Saka is expected to be sidelined deep into January at least, having suffered a hamstring injury in Arsenal‘s 5-1 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The winger, Arsenal‘s main threat in the Premier League with five goals and 10 assists, left Selhurst Park on crutches with Arteta left “pretty worried.”
Arteta has now told reporters that his No. 7 will be out for “many weeks” with what is already his third hamstring injury this season.
“It’s not looking good. He’s gonna be out for many weeks,” the Spaniard said on Monday, per the Evening Standard.
“I cannot be too specific because I don’t know but it will be many weeks.
“It’s a huge [blow]. He’s obviously a big player for us, you just have to see the impact that he has on the team.”
Arsenal face Ipswich, Brentford, Brighton, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Wolves in the Premier League in the rest of December and through January.
It stands to reason that, based on Arteta’s words, Saka could miss all six of those games along with the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Newcastle and meetings with Man United in the FA Cup and Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.
However, the Mail‘s Sami Mokbel reports concerns that the England international could in fact be out until March, which would also rule him out of five more games as it stands including a trip to Man City on February 2.
With Arsenal also losing Raheem Sterling to a knee injury it limits Arteta’s options in a key area in attack, while key defender Ben White is out until at least March.
That is clearly a positive for Liverpool, who head into their clash with Leicester on Boxing Day with only Ibrahima Konate (knee) and Conor Bradley (hamstring) out.
Already four points clear of second-placed Chelsea with a game in hand, the Reds are also six points above Arsenal in third having played a game fewer.
While Arteta has gained a reputation for outright lying about player injuries, this does not appear to be the case with Saka.
“It’s going to be a really good exercise for us to think of ways to overcome another challenge because we’ve had a lot over the season,” he added.
