Aaron Ramsey is likely to be out for at least a month, as Arsenalโs midfield injured his hamstring in the 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
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Ramsey, 25, limped off in the second half of the game at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday and his manager Arsene Wenger hinted thatย the Welsh midfielder has played too many games this season.
The attacking midfielder has been ever-present for the Gunners this season, starting all nine games and scoring his first goal of the season in the 3-0 away win at Watford last weekend.
However, speaking to journalists on Thursday ahead of Arsenalโs clash with Everton on Saturday (Watch live, 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC and online via Live Extra) Wenger confirmed Ramsey will be out until at least late November.
โHe had a scan today but heโs out,โ Wenger said. ย โI believe he will be out until after the next international break. With the [last] international break, the fact that he played against Andorra certainly cost Bale and him as well.โ
Ramseyโs form in the center of midfield alongside Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin has been a key component in their fine start to the campaign, as a win on Saturdayย would see them momentarily leapfrog Manchester City into top spot in the Premier League.
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The former Cardiff City star has had big injury setbacks in the past โ the broken leg he suffered back in 2010 when playing against Stoke City was one of the most horrific in PL history and took him well over a year to recover from โ butย he should come straight back into the team before a busy festive period. Yet after losing one of his key cogs due to an injury which has likely come from tiredness,ย Wenger will be disappointed Wales didnโt shelter Ramsey a little better as he played in their meaningless final group game against Andorra last week even though they had already qualified for the 2016 European Championships.
When you look at potential replacements for Ramsey in Arsenalโs midfield, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is the main contender to step in, while Mikel Artetaย will be knocking on Wengerโs door for a start. The Arsenal boss revealed that Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky and Danny Welbeck are all out injured until January, so if a few more midfielders go down then Wenger could be looking at yet another injury crisis at the Emirates.
Another option could be to broke up the impressive front three of Theo Walcott, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil to bring in Olivier Giroud up top and have those three playing in-behind him and in front of Coquelin and Cazorla. Whatever Wenger decides to do, losing Ramsey at a pivotal stage of the season is not ideal.
