England midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will be 'out for a while' because of a knee injury, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed.
The 20-year-old - who has become a key part of Roy Hodgson’s squad for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers - limped out of the Gunners’ 3-1 home defeat by Aston Villa on the opening day of the new Barclays Premier League season and reports have suggested he could be set for up to six months on the sidelines.
While Wenger did not give any timescale on the player’s recovery when he gave some team news to the club’s official website, ahead of travelling to Istanbul for the Champions League play-off first leg against Fenerbahce on Wednesday, the prognosis does not appear positive.
'The difference from Saturday is that Oxlade-Chamberlain is out for a while with a knee problem,' Wenger said on Arsenal Player.
There was, though, better news on Bacary Sagna, Kieran Gibbs, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Tomas Rosiscky, all of whom trained on Tuesday morning, as did defender Nacho Monreal, who has been out with a back problem.
There had been fears over the fitness of those individuals, especially full-back Sagna, who landed awkwardly towards the end of the game on Saturday, but they could all play some part in Turkey as Arsenal look to seal a place in the lucrative group stages of the Champions League.
If Arsenal do reach the group stages there will be even more calls for new faces in north London, after a bid for Newcastle midfielder Yohan Cabaye was rejected on Monday.
The £10million move for the France international is the latest failed transfer attempt during a frustrating summer for Wenger, who has also looked at signing the likes of Wayne Rooney, Luis Suarez and Gonzalo Higuain with no success to date.
The Gunners fans were vocal during the Villa game, chanting 'spend some money', as Arsenal are understood to be sitting on a £70million warchest with which to try and attract marquee names to help mount a long-overdue sustained title challenge.
Dailymail
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