Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Bukayo Saka is likely to miss “more than two months” of action after successful surgery on his hamstring.
Saka – who has nine goals and 13 assists in 24 games this term – hobbled off during Arsenal’s 5-1 win over Crystal Palace last weekend, leaving Selhurst Park on crutches.
The Gunners eased to a 1-0 win over Ipswich without him on Friday, but it wasn’t a victory to quell doubts over their ability to cope without him, as will be the case for some time.
“He had a procedure,” Arteta confirmed after the game. “Everything went well, but unfortunately he will be out for many, many weeks.
“I said many weeks, so I think it will be more than two months. I don’t know exactly how much longer.
“It will depend on how the scar tissue starts to heal, the first week or so, the mobility of that. Let’s see, it’s very difficult to say.”
That forecast will see Saka return to action for Arsenal’s clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford on March 8.
But Arteta was able to provide “good news” on Chelsea loanee Raheem Sterling, who has missed the last two games with a knee injury.
The 30-year-old was expected to be out for “weeks” with the issue, but it’s not as bad as it was first feared.
“Yes, we have to see this week how he evolves,” added Arteta. “We probably expected the knee injury to take longer than it has evolved in the last few days.
“Hopefully that’s good news because we need him.”
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The Gunners’ next clash comes against Brentford on New Year’s Day, as they look to build on consecutive Premier League victories to keep pace with Liverpool at the top of the table.
Asked how his players stepped up in the absence of Saka against Ipswich, Arteta said: “Very good. It will be different. We had moments in the second half. It is a unit that is new and will take time for players to understand fully.”
Arsenal moved ahead of Chelsea after their win at the Emirates but are still six points behind Liverpool, who also have a game in hand on the chasing pack.
Despite the gap, Arteta is pleased with the position his team are in given the problems they’ve had to deal with this season.
He added: “Considering all the circumstances we had this season, the amount of times we had to play with 10 men, all the injuries that we had, it’s good to be in the position that we are but it’s not where we want to be. We want to be first.”
