Arsenal defender Ben White has been ruled out for “months” following knee surgery, manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed.
Arteta explained that the 27-year-old had been dealing with multiple injuries, and during the international break, the decision was made for him to undergo an operation.
“It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately,” said Arteta, whose side host Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
“We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.
“He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months.”
Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: “We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don’t expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly.”
Arsenal are set to welcome back Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka for Saturday’s match, as both have recovered from knocks sustained during the draw against Chelsea, which also led to their withdrawal from the England squad.
Additionally, defender Riccardo Calafiori could return after a month-long absence due to a knee injury. However, Takehiro Tomiyasu remains unavailable.