Arsenal right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu is set to miss the rest of the season with a knee injury that requires surgery as per the Twitter handle afcstuff.
The Japanese went down against Sporting Lisbon in the Europa League last 16 fixture and had to be substituted early on.
He missed the Premier League match against Crystal Palace as well, with Arteta’s words during the press conference sounding pessimistic. The club’s worst fears might have come true and the Japanese could end up not kicking the ball until next season.
Tomiyasu, who was a regular starter for the club at right-back last year, lost his spot to Ben White this season, who was shifted to the position to accommodate William Saliba at centre back.
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The player still remained an integral part of the squad, deputising for White in the cup fixtures and whenever he was unable to play in the league.
Tomiyasu even replaced Zinchenko at left-back this season when he was out for a few games during the earlier games.
Arsenal will be hoping to keep White injury free for the crucial 10 games remaining that could see Arsenal lift the title after almost 20 years.
For the worst-case scenario, Arteta has been testing Thomas Partey at right-back, and he could be forced to use that option if White is unable to play, with Jorginho coming in for Partey at CDM.