Arsenal have been hit with an injury bombshell as they prepare for their return to the Premier League this weekend.

Mikel Arteta has been making the most of a free weekend by putting his squad through their paces in a warm weather training camp in Dubai this week. They return to action on Saturday (12.30pm) when they take on struggling Leicester City away from home.

But it seems that they will now face that game, as well as the remainder of the season, without a recognised senior striker in the squad. It’s reported that Kai Havertz has suffered an injury during the training camp, leaving Arteta with a selection headache.

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The German is Arsenal’s top scorer this season, and will join Gabriel Jesus on the sidelines. Jesus was ruled out for the remainder of the season last month after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

It leaves Arteta short of attacking options, especially considering the shorter-term problems with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli. Here is the latest on Havertz and what it means for Arsenal.

Arsenal blow

Reports of the injury to Havertz first emerged on Tuesday evening , when the Daily Mail reported that he had suffered a hamstring injury during the training camp. At the time the exact diagnosis of the problem was unconfirmed.

The reports were then backed up by the Athletic on Wednesday afternoon with it reported that the forward is set to miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn hamstring. It is added that the player will undergo further assessments with it currently unclear on if he will be required to undergo surgery.

Expected return

The injury means that Havertz is not expected to be fit enough to feature before the end of the season, with the Athletic saying that concentration is already on getting him fit in time for the start of the 2025/26 campaign.

Matches he’ll miss

Havertz will miss all of the remaining games of the season in the Premier League, as well as Arsenal’s round of 16 Champions League tie against either AC Milan, PSV, Feyenoord or Juventus in March.

Replacement decision

Ahead of the game against Leicester and the rest of the season, Arteta now has a decision to make on how to replace Havertz in the starting XI. The Arsenal boss can either play a player out of position, such as moving Leandro Trossard central, turn to the free agent market with the Gunners having space in their Premier League squad, or give one of the club’s up-and-coming young players a chance in the first team.