Bellerin's month layoff leaves Arsenal with right-back dilemma
Hector Bellerin has been ruled out of Arsenal duty for around a month ahead of Saturday's trip to Manchester United, exposing an area of the field that Arsene Wenger's ranks are relatively shallow in.
"Hector is out for four weeks," Wenger told reporters at Thursday's press conference. He got injured in the last 10 seconds against Spurs after a very strong tackle by Danny Rose."
Bellerin reported to the Spain Under-21 camp for the recent two-legged affair with Austria, but was sent back to north London last week after his ailment was uncovered by the national team medical staff. Sky Sports News' Stephen Turner reports Bellerin is battling an ankle ligament complaint.
The 21-year-old's layoff marks a major blow for the Gunners. The former Barcelona youngster is widely regarded as one of the finest full-backs in Europe, and has reportedly attracted the attention of both his former club and Premier League rival Manchester City. He's allegedly on the verge of quashing that speculation, however, following stories that he's agreed a lucrative new six-year contract at the Emirates Stadium.
Related - Report: Bellerin inks £30M Arsenal deal amid Barcelona link
Due to the continued calf issues of Mathieu Debuchy, the Arsenal website has started a poll asking fans who they believe should fill the right-back void in the weekend wrangle: Carl Jenkinson, the at-times erratic centre-half Gabriel, deep-lying midfielder Francis Coquelin, or academy product Ainsley Maitland-Niles.
The natural choice would be Jenkinson, but the ex-Charlton man only returned from cruciate ligament damage in late October, and has played just two matches since - against second-tier Reading and Bulgarian minnow Ludogorets Razgrad.
Elsewhere in Wenger's squad, Santi Cazorla is still unable to train since suffering another Achilles setback last month, but Alexis Sanchez, whose own injury concerns were dispelled with a brace in Chile's 3-1 victory ov Uruguay on Tuesday, has contacted his manager to say his fighting fit for Saturday's clash.
"I haven't heard a lot (about his fitness) because we were in doubt 24 hours before the game against Uruguay," continued Wenger.
"We didn't know if he'd play or not. In the end they decided to play him. He texted us to tell us he's in good shape after the game. He came off after 84 minutes and now we have to wait. I see him tomorrow (Friday) morning and then I will see if he can be involved in the squad or not."