Mikel Arteta has refused to rule out dipping into the January transfer window to cope with the absence of Bukayo Saka.
The England winger suffered a torn hamstring during Saturday’s 5-1 win over Crystal Palace that Arteta admitted is set to see him sidelined for a significant period.
“It’s not looking good he’s going to be out for many weeks,” he said earlier on Monday. “I cannot be too specific because I don’t know, but it will be many weeks.”
Saka’s absence on its own is significant enough. The 23-year-old has had a hand in 49% of Arsenal’s goals in the Premier League and Champions League. It has compounded by the fact Raheem Sterling is facing a lengthy spell out of his own with a knee issue sustained in training.
He’s gonna be out for weeks I believe,” the Spaniard said. “He needs further testing tomorrow to understand the extent of his injury. It’s his knee. We have to wait and see another 24 hours. Unfortunately he’s gonna be out for a while.”
With two key players out in the same position, the option of addressing the issue in the January transfer market is open to the Gunners. This is something that they are not ruling out, although Arteta has stated that the first point of call will be to look within.
