Mikel Arteta has been dealt a fresh injury blow after Noni Madueke appeared to pick up a knee problem during the second half of Arsenal’s Champions League tie with Sporting CP. Madueke fell to the ground and required attention midway through the second period before it quickly became apparent he was unable to carry on.
Madueke was captured by television cameras hobbling off the pitch with the support of Arsenal‘s medical staff. The winger was substituted by Max Dowman. Madueke sat down in the Arsenal dugout for several minutes before heading down the tunnel for more treatment in the dressing room.
Arsenal held a 1-0 lead from the first leg in Portugal and will face Atletico Madrid in the semi-final of the competition, having held Sporting to a goalless draw at the Emirates.
But with Bukayo Saka also sidelined, a potential Madueke injury would prove problematic for Arteta in the run-in, starting at the Emirates this weekend when they welcome Manchester City.
“It was something that he was carrying for a while,” Arteta said regarding Saka’s injury before hosting Sporting. “It was an Achilles issue.”
Saka has not featured since before the international break, having also pulled out of the England camp for their final matches before the World Cup.
Jurrien Timber, Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori‘s absences continued in the European second leg, but Declan Rice was available once more following his recent fitness concerns.
Should Arteta be without both Madueke and Saka when Pep Guardiola‘s side travel to London, he could be forced to call upon Dowman to play on the right.
The 16-year-old was given the nod in a Champions League quarter-final, though Arteta could ask one of Leandro Trossard or Gabriel Martinelli to play on the right flank.
Or Gabriel Jesus could play in a role he was previously given at Manchester City, where he worked with Arteta, before they both moved to north London.