Eberechi Eze was a surprise absentee from the Arsenal squad at Wembley as he missed the 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the EFL Cup final on Sunday afternoon.
Newcastle’s Harvey Barnes also stepped in for Eze as he pulled out the England squad for the upcoming friendlies against Uruguay and Japan over the next week.
“We tried everything (to get him fit for the final).” Arteta said of Eze on Sunday, later adding: “We have to do another scan in six or seven days and wait to see the results.”
Now, as per the BBC, initial fears are the attacking midfielder could miss between four and six weeks as it is revealed that the winger has picked up a calf injury.
It is bad news for the 27-year-old as Arsenal track down the title but also as he misses out on the chance to impress England boss Thomas Tuchel who may now overlook him for his World Cup squad over the next few months.
Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham, Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon, Morgan Rogers, Marcus Rashford, Jarrod Bowen and Noni Madueke are all fighting for Eze’s position that he may now have to surrender.
Arsenal's next game is the FA Cup quarter-final at Southampton on Saturday but it is unlikely that Eze will return until after both legs of their Champions League clash with Sporting next month.