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Arsenal blow as Wenger rules defender out for the rest of the season
Arsenal have been hit by an injury blow with Arsene Wenger confirming that Per Mertesacker will miss the rest of the season with a hamstring injury.
Mertesacker had briefly lost his place to Gabriel a few weeks ago but was brought back in to the side for our game with West Brom last month which saw us secure a 2-0 victory.
The German giant captained the side for subsequent games with Sunderland and Norwich and helped secure three consecutive clean sheets.
However, Mertesacker limped out of the 1-0 win over Norwich last weekend after pulling his hamstring and Wenger has now confirmed the centre-back’s season is over.
Per will now miss this weekend’s huge game against Manchester City as well as our final game of the season against Aston Villa at the Emirates next weekend.
Speaking to Arsenal.com ahead of Sunday’s crucial trip to the Etihad, Wenger said:
From the squad that played against Norwich last Saturday, we have lost Per Mertesacker. Per is out for the remaining two matches with a hamstring injury. Everyone else from last week’s squad is fit and available for selection.
It’s a blow to lose Mertesacker as the defence looked far more settled with him alongside Koscielny and it’s no coincidence we kept three clean sheets with him back in the side.
However, hopefully Gabriel can step up during the final two games of the season as we’ve still got to secure our top four position and there’s a slim chance we could yet finish above Tottenham.