Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori was forced to withdraw from the Gunners’ lineup to face Brighton on Saturday after suffering an injury in the warm-up.
Riccardo Calafiori Suffers Injury In Warm-Up
Riccardo Calafiori became the latest addition to Arsenal’s injury list on Saturday.
The Italian was due to start at left-back in the Gunners’ Premier League clash against Brighton, however he was forced to withdraw from the lineup after suffering an injury in the warm-up.
Calafiori was spotted heading down the tunnel alongside club doctor Flo Newton, with the club later confirming that Myles Lewis-Skelly had been drafted into the lineup as a replacement.
Just 14 minutes before kick-off, the official Arsenal account tweeted: “Myles Lewis-Skelly replaces Riccardo Calafiori in the line-up after the Italian picked up an issue in the warm-up.”
Mikel Arteta is expected to provide an update on the defender following the full-time whistle.
His injury comes as a major blow for the north Londoners, as he has starred as one of their standout players this term. He was even named in Jamie Carragher’s team of the season so far.
It comes at a particularly frustrating time given their other injury concerns, especially in defence, with Jurrien Timber also missing out on the Seagulls’ visit to the Emirates on Saturday.
Arteta confirmed the Dutchman was out of action ahead of kick-off: “In the last part of the [Crystal Palace] game [on Tuesday], he felt something and could not carry on. So, he’s out.”
On a more positive note, central defender Gabriel was named on the bench for the first time since suffering an adductor injury while playing for Brazil against Senegal on November 15.
He was introduced as a substitute for Lewis-Skelly in the 71st minute.
Arsenal Injury Crisis Worsens
Elsewhere, fellow Arsenal defenders Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera are also out.
The former is out with a minor hamstring concern, and the latter is out with an ankle problem, with both players expected to be back in contention towards the start of January.
In other areas of the pitch, Kai Havertz is nearing a return from his long-term knee injury, while 15-year-old academy ace Max Dowman is out for two months with an ankle issue.
Despite their numerous concerns, Arsenal managed to seal a crucial win over Brighton.
Martin Odegaard put Arteta’s side in front in the first half, before a Georginio Rutter own-goal sent the north Londoners on their way to returning to the top of the Premier League table.
Diego Gomez pulled one back for the visitors, but they were unable to fashion a comeback.
A 2-1 triumph sees the Gunners retain their two-point lead at the summit of the table. Manchester City follow in second place, while Aston Villa are in third and Liverpool are in fourth.
Arsenal are next in action on Tuesday evening against the Villans, whom they suffered just their second league defeat of the season to at Villa Park towards the start of the month.
