Mikel Merino suffers fractured shoulder in training, out for several weeks.
Arsenal’s new signing Mikel Merino‘s debut has been put on hold after the midfielder suffered a fractured shoulder in his first training session, manager Mikel Arteta confirmed on Friday.
The 28-year-old Spaniard, who joined from Real Sociedad for €32.5 million ($36m), collided with centre-back Gabriel Magalhães during practice at London Colney, resulting in the unfortunate injury.
Merino had been eager to make his debut against Brighton in Saturday’s Premier League clash at Emirates Stadium, but will now face a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
The exact timeline for his return is uncertain, but Arteta confirmed that Merino will be out for several weeks, dealing a blow to Arsenal’s midfield options.
“Very unfortunate,” Arteta told a news conference.
“Yesterday [Thursday] he had a collision and he has a shoulder injury unfortunately.
It looks like he’s going to be out for a few weeks. First session.
He was really excited and everything was looking really good.
“He landed on the floor and Gabi landed on top of him and it looks like he has a small fracture, probably.
“We have to see [how long he is out for]. He was in so much pain. We’ll have to do some more tests on that and then we’ll have more conclusive answers.”
There was better news regarding forward Gabriel Jesus, who underwent an MRI scan on a groin injury amid fears he could be ruled out for a lengthy period.
Read Also: Aaron Ramsdale Completes Permanent Move to Southampton
On Jesus Injury
“He is progressing really well. He had a little muscle injury and he is doing quite a lot of stuff already, so we expect him to be with us pretty soon.“
Arteta also confirmed Arsenal would ideally like to replace both Aaron Ramsdale and Karl Hein before tonight’s deadline.
“It’s clear that we have lost Karl and Aaron so we have to replace them both.
“First of all just say thank you so much for what he’s done for the club, for the team and for myself.
“When he joined he brought a lot of joy and charisma and energy and he was really good at that time.
But then things developed. He had a situation where he was insisting a lot that he was happiest when he plays.
“We have tried to fulfil that desire that he had. He looked really excited and happy the other day.
He’s joining a great club and a great coach, he looks really excited so I think we are all happy for him.”
Ramsdale completed his £25m ($32.9m) move to Southampton this afternoon while Hein left to join Real Valladolid on loan.
