One of Arsenal’s top player and skilled playmaker was noticeably absent from Arsenal’s lineup announcement for Sunday’s match against West Ham. The highly skilled playmaker had recently earned his place back in Mikel Arteta’s plans leading up to the game at the London Stadium. There was anticipation that he might even start, as he did in the 2-1 victory against Nottingham Forest.
Disappointment arose when Smith Rowe didn’t even make the substitutes’ list on Sunday. Arteta disclosed before kickoff that Smith Rowe had “rolled his ankle” during training.
Fortunately, the injury isn’t believed to be severe, and Smith Rowe isn’t expected to be out for long. The incident occurred during a training session at London Colney on Thursday when he attempted to evade a slide tackle. Landing awkwardly on his ankle caused bruising and swelling.
Despite his willingness to play through the discomfort, Arsenal opted not to risk exacerbating the injury, especially with the Champions League looming. Consequently, Smith Rowe was omitted from the squad for Sunday’s London derby.
His ankle will be closely monitored in the upcoming week to assess his availability for the Burnley match on Saturday. Even if he misses out against Vincent Kompany’s side, the setback won’t keep him sidelined for an extended period, which is encouraging news for Arsenal as they face a series of important fixtures.
Gabriel Jesus (knee) and Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf) will undergo assessments this week as they aim to regain full fitness. Additionally, Takehiro Tomiyasu is hopeful of returning for the match at Turf Moor after being sidelined for the West Ham victory.
