Arsenal are gearing up for a crucial midweek European game, with the north London giants set to take on Slavia Praha in the first leg of their Europa League quarterfinal showdown. Unfortunately, the Gunners have been handed horrible injury news ahead of this Emirates Stadium showdown.
Mikel Arteta's men head into this fixture on the back of an embarrassing Premier League defeat, losing 3-0 at the Emirates Stadium – the venue of Thursday's fixture – against Liverpool. To make things worse, the Gunners will be without one of their players of the season for this Europa League clash and the foreseeable future.
That man is none other than Kieran, the Scottish international who has been nothing but a revelation at the left-back role since joining from Celtic. The 23-year-old picked up a knock early on in the Liverpool clash and was forced off right before the break.
This immediately sparked fear among the fan base given how close the Slavia Praha fixture is. It quickly became evident that the Scottish defender would not be available for the first leg but what remained a mystery is how long he would be sidelined for.
Arsenal have now revealed the extent of his knee injury, announcing that he will be out for four to six weeks. This means Arteta could be without his first-choice left-back until the UEFA Europa League final, if the Gunners manage to go all the way in his absence.
Arteta on Tierney being involved again this season: I don't know. We'll have to go day by day and see how the knee is reacting.
— James Benge (@jamesbenge) April 7, 2021
On Tierney playing at the Euros: Again it will depend how things evolve in the next few weeks. He's so keen to play for us before the end of the season
The north London giants do not have a direct backup for Tierney, with the club's only other senior left-back Saed Kolasinac leaving for Schalke. Cedric Soares, who is a right-back, will be shifted to the other side to deputize, as he has done before, but this is far from ideal.
That isn't Arteta's only concern for Thursday's game as Martin Odegaard is now a doubt. The club confirmed via their official website that the Norwegian is suffering from slight discomfort in his right ankle since being on international duty. However, it wasn't all doom and gloom as Saka, Smith Rowe, and Xhaka have all returned to training and are available for selection.
