Arsenal duo Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey have been sent back to their clubs after picking up knocks on international duty.
The Gunners are set to take on Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, and we were supposed to be boosted by our rivals having injury problems in key areas, but it is now us who has our own issues.
Aaron Ramsey has been arguably our best player all season, and we now face the daunting task of taking on our neighbours in the North London derby match without him, after he was forced to withdraw from the Wales squad with a calf injury.
Olivier Giroud has also returned to the Emirates club early, and it has since emerged that the French striker was suffering prior to kick-off against Wales, and was still played despite that.
The duo will be a big loss to our squad against Tottenham, with Aaron having been crucial in running our game from midfield this term, but it remains to be seen whether they pair will in fact miss out, as our medical staff will need time to analyse their sufferings.
Our rivals are not without their own concerns however, with Dele Alli, Harry Kane, Toby Alderweireld, Harry Winks and Hugo Lloris all having missed the international break with injuries and niggles. At least four of those are expected to be fit to feature, but I certainly wouldn’t be disappointed should one of Kane or Lloris not happen to make it to the match!
Would Ramsey’s absence open the door for Wilshere to make his first Premier League start of the campaign? Could Nketiah get another chance to be a hero from the bench? Which Spurs star is most key to their side?
Pat J