Arsenal lose Zubimendi and Hincapie to ankle injuries before Lille tie

Arsenal will be without Martin Zubimendi and Piero Hincapie for Tuesday’s Champions League match against Lille after both suffered ankle injuries in a post-match training session.

The pair were hurt during a small-sided game at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, following Arsenal’s 2-1 Premier League victory over Leeds United. Manager Mikel Arteta said both players would undergo further scans to establish the seriousness of their injuries and how long they are likely to be unavailable.

Hincapie had come on in the closing stages against Leeds before being carried off after the training session. Zubimendi, who was an unused substitute in the match, also sustained an ankle problem.

Arteta confirmed that neither player would feature against Lille and suggested Zubimendi’s injury may be the more serious of the two.

“We had a training session planned after the game for everyone that didn’t get enough minutes, and in two unfortunate actions we lost two players,” said the Arsenal manager.

“Not great. We need to assess them today, they will have further scans to see how they are and then we will have the timeframe how long they are going to be out for.”

The injuries come during a demanding period for Arsenal and leave Arteta with fewer options to manage his squad. Hincapie offers defensive cover, while Zubimendi provides another choice in midfield.

Arteta defends decision to train

Despite the setback, Arteta defended the decision to organise the session, saying players who had played limited minutes needed extra work to maintain their fitness and sharpness.

The arrangement was intended to keep the squad on a similar recovery schedule. Players who had featured less against Leeds took part in small-sided matches before the rest of the squad completed a recovery day on Sunday.

Arteta said he had spoken to his staff about the injuries but saw no reason to alter the approach solely because two players had been hurt.

“The temptation is now (to say) ‘Oh we don’t want to take that risk and now we do something else.’ But we were going to do that the next day anyway and when you play those kind of small-sided games, there is contact and these things can happen,” he said.

He added that Arsenal had held similar sessions regularly during his time at the club without experiencing the same problem.

“Never train and they don’t get injured. The consequence of that is when you ask them to play they have no rhythm and no impact in the game,” Arteta said.

“It’s happened now and hopefully it doesn’t happen again, but what can you do? If I had a crystal ball I would just say ‘guys, get in the jacuzzi and I will see you tomorrow’.”

There was more positive news concerning William Saliba, who has returned to light training, although Arteta said the centre-back remains weeks away from competitive action.

Kai Havertz and Ezri Konsa have recovered from injuries suffered during the international break, trained and played against Leeds.