Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has some thinking to do in terms of options on the left side of attack.
Gabriel Martinelli has been playing regularly, and excelling, in that position.
However, with Arsenal having so many games in the coming weeks, Martinelli can’t play them all.
And today, the Gunners confirmed that Emile Smith Rowe is set for months on the sidelines.
The Arsenal academy graduate has undergone surgery to repair a damaged tendon in his groin.
‘We are hopeful that Emile will return to full training in December,’ the Gunners said in a statement.
Goal.com’s Arsenal correspondent Charles Watts has suggested that Arteta could use Oleksandr Zinchenko at left wing.
Although Watts acknowledged that he won’t be the “number one option”, he could still “do a job there”.
Watts said on his YouTube channel: “You could potentially play Zinchenko high.
“I don’t think that’s going to be number one option because Mikel obviously likes him at left back and he likes him moving into that left midfield role.
“Whether you really want to play him on the left-hand side of a front three is another thing.
“He’ll do a job there because he’s a very talented footballer, his technique’s excellent, his left foot is excellent and there’s no doubt he’ll do a job there.
“But, you know, he’s not really an out and out left-winger, is he?
“We know that he’s more of a left-back / midfielder, but you might have to go with that if you want to give Martinelli a breather.”
