Arsenal suffer fresh injury blow as Ben White undergoes minor procedure to add to Mikel Arteta problems

Arsenal defender Ben White has undergone a minor knee procedure, adding to Mikel Arteta’s injury concerns.

White has been playing through the pain in recent weeks and it has been decided that the international break represents a good chance to resolve the issue.

White missed four matches earlier in the season with a knee issue and was recently left out of the starting XI for the Premier League defeat at Newcastle as a precaution.

The Gunners are already missing full-backs Riccardo Calafiori and Takehiro Tomiyasu to injury. Jurrien Timber has also had to overcome a number of minor issues at the start of this season, after missing most of last term with a torn ACL, and Arteta has at times had to use Thomas Partey as an emergency right-back.

Further forward, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka were both forced off during Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea and subsequently pulled out of the England squad.

Arteta has only just welcomed captain Martin Odegaard back from two months on the sidelines with an ankle problem and following the Chelsea draw bemoaned his side’s bad luck with injuries so far this season.

“What I’m praying is that after the international break we have the team fully physically equipped,” Arteta said. “That they are available and that they are fit, because, it’s been a nightmare for eight weeks.

“Doubt after doubt, issue after issue, not only with the ones that are not able to play, but with the ones who are able to play only for certain moments and not able to play.”