Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has described Thomas Partey's thigh injury as 'significant', suggesting the season could be over for the Ghanaian midfielder.
The Gunners have already lost left-back Kieran Tierney to a season-ending knee injury and the sight of Partey limping off late in the 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace had Arsenal fans fearing that they could be about to lose another of their most influential players.
Partey has been sent to a specialist in an attempt to get him back before the end of the campaign, but Arsenal have refused to put a time frame on his recovery.
“It’s a little bit ambiguous but he has a significant injury and we’ll have to keep assessing him,” Arteta said. “He will be out for some weeks.
"It could be [that he can play again this season] but it could not be the case, because it’s an area where he had a previous injury as well and he felt it straightaway. He’s not fit.”
In Partey's place, Albert Sambi Lokonga is expected to start alongside Granit Xhaka for Saturday's visit of Brighton, with Mohamed Elneny acting as cover on the bench.
Youngsters Charlie Patino and Salah Oulad M'Hand have been involved with Arteta's first team this season as well and could fill in for Partey if needed.
Source : 90min