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Arsenal injury crisis: Wenger could be without 7 first team stars for Chelsea game

By on January 1, 2018

mesut ozil arsenal

Arsenal are facing an injury crisis ahead of Wednesday visit of Chelsea to the Emirates with as many as seven first team regulars doubtful for the game.

Aaron Ramsey is certain to miss the match due to a hamstring injury that’s kept him out in recent games while Nacho Monreal is also still nursing an ankle problem.

Olivier Giroud has been ruled out for at least another two weeks due to a hamstring injury that he picked up in mid-December while Santi Cazorla is obviously still out with his long-term Achilles problems.

However, our injury woes mounted on Sunday as Mesut Ozil missed the 1-1 draw with West Brom while Laurent Koscielny and Sead Kolasinac also picked up knocks during the 1-1 draw at the Hawthorns.

Ozil was a surprise omission when the team sheets were announced but it soon emerged that he’d picked up a knee injury and while it’s not thought to be serious, Arsene Wenger admitted after the game that the playmaker is unlikely to return for the Chelsea showdown.

When asked if Ozil would make the game on Wednesday, the boss told the Daily Mail:

‘Little chance, yes. From what I’ve heard.’

Ozil was badly missed yesterday as we looked bereft of ideas in the final third without him so it would be a HUGE blow if he was to miss the Chelsea game.

I said in my match preview that Koscielny should have been rested on Sunday as it was only a matter of time before his Achilles injury played up again and sadly I was proved right.

The centre-back was substituted with 15 minutes to go after aggravating his troublesome Achilles and he’s now facing a race against time to be fit to take on the defending champions.

sead-kolasinac-arsenal

Kolasinac pulled up during the closing stages of the first half with what looked like a groin problem and had to be replaced by Ainsley Maitland-Niles just before half time.

Wenger didn’t give any update on Koscielny or Kolasinac during his post-game press conference but the duo are now considered as doubts to take on Chelsea as they have less than two days to recover.

It means Wenger is facing the possibility of being without SEVEN key players for a vital game with Chelsea, which is obviously not ideal as we desperately need a win to boost our top four hopes.