Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka facing three-month lay-off with knee injury

Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka faces up to three months on the sidelines with a knee injury suffered during Sunday’s north London derby win over Tottenham.

Xhaka was accidentally caught by Lucas Moura after the Spurs forward had been challenged by Thomas Partey and was on the ground as the visitors hit their consolation goal in Arsenal’s 3-1 win.

He limped off to be replaced by Albert Sambi Lokonga but could now miss the rest of 2021 after a specialist examined the injury.

“Further to injuring his right knee during Sunday’s match against Tottenham Hotspur, assessments and scans have confirmed that Granit Xhaka suffered a significant injury to his medial knee ligament,” an Arsenal statement read.

“A specialist consultation took place in London on Tuesday evening which has determined that Granit does not require surgery.

“Granit’s recovery and rehabilitation programme will start immediately and we are aiming for him to be back in action in approximately three months.

“Everyone at the club will now be supporting and working hard with Granit to get him back on the pitch as soon as possible.”

Sunday was Xhaka’s first game back following a three-match ban for a red card in the 5-0 thrashing at Manchester City before the international break.

The injury also sees him miss the last two international breaks of the calendar year, with Switzerland losing their captain for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Northern Ireland and Lithuania.

As well as being suspended for Arsenal’s last three games, Xhaka has only recently recovered having tested positive for Covid during the recent international break.