Arsenal striker Lucas Perez is set to miss six weeks of football, meaning he will potentially miss 12 games in the run-up to the hectic festive period.
The Spaniard suffered reported ankle ligament damage in the Gunners 2-0 win over Reading on Wednesday night, a nasty challenge in the second half from Danzell Gravenberch ended Perez’s night prematurely after earning a rare start up front in the EFL Cup.
Arsenal head into a busy period now with plenty of fixtures coming thick and fast including the EFL Cup Quarter-Final at home to Southampton and several Champions League ties that Perez would have hoped to have been involved in.
If the striker is indeed ruled out for the expected six weeks, Arsene Wenger will have to continue to rely heavily on Alexis Sanchez up front with Olivier Giroud as backup. The Frenchman has struggled to regain full fitness this season after a physically and mentally draining summer away with France in Euro 2016.
Let’s take a look at the Gunners upcoming fixtures:
Sat 29th Oct 12.30
Sunderland
Away – Premier League
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Tue 1st Nov 19.45
Ludogorets Razgrad
Away – UEFA Champions League
Sun 6th Nov 12.00
Tottenham Hotspur
Home – Premier League
*** INTERNATIONAL BREAK ***
Sat 19th Nov 12.30
Manchester United
Away – Premier League
Wed 23rd Nov 19.45
Paris Saint Germain
Home – UEFA Champions League
Sun 27th Nov 14.15
Bournemouth
Home – Premier League
29/30 Nov TBC
Southampton
Home – EFL Cup
DECEMBER 2016
Sat 3rd Dec 17.30
West Ham United
Away – Premier League
Tue 6th Dec 19.45
FC Basel
Away – UEFA Champions League
Sat 10th Dec 15.00
Stoke City
Home – Premier League
Tue 13th Dec 19.45
Everton
Away – Premier League
*** POTENTIAL RETURN DATE ***
Sun 18th Dec 16.00
Manchester City
Away – Premier League
*** LIKELY RETURN DATE ***
Mon 26th Dec 15.00
West Bromwich Albion
Home – Premier League
Some very difficult ties with November and December set to be a crucial period for the Gunners.
Perez arguably would not expect to play a part in several of the blockbuster ties considering Alexis and Giroud (when fit) are ahead of him in the pecking order. But it’s the diversity of options and depth that is one of Arsenal’s strengths this season – and this is showing signs of fading heading into November. Perez’ impact from the bench has been valuable on a number of occasions.
Fingers crossed the diagnosis is not as bad as first feared for the striker, we can expect to receive an update this morning in Wenger’s press-conference.
Stay tuned to AllArsenal.com for the latest team news.
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