Arsene Wenger has confirmed Hector Bellerin will miss 4 weeks after picking up an injury against Tottenham Hotspur, but who could fill in for the right-back?
The 21-year-old Spanish international has featured in all 11 of Arsenal’s league fixtures this season, but could now miss out on 8 games, including the crucial fixture against Paris St.Germain in the UEFA Champions League.
Bellerin will also miss out on the EFL cup semi-final against Southampton, which takes place at The Emirates on 30th November.
More importantly, he will miss out on Saturday evening’s crunch clash with Manchester United, with Wenger today confirming the news that Bellerin was injured :
“Hector is out for four weeks,” Wenger said at his press conference on Thursday. He got injured in the last 10 seconds against Tottenham in a very strong tackle from Rose.” said Wenger, according to Sky Sports.
This will come as a big blow to Arsenal, as Bellerin has continued his form from last season, putting in consistently good performances both defensively and offensively.
It will also break up a back-4 that has conceded 11 goals in 11 games in the league this season, 4 of which came against Liverpool on the opening day of the season.
There is no doubt Bellerin is Arsenal’s best right-back, so who could fill in for him?
Mathieu Debuchy
Debuchy has not made a single appearance in any competition so far, but is the only other specialist right-back at Arsenal with any real experience other than Carl Jenkinson.
Shkodran Mustafi would have been on this list, but it is highly unlikely Wenger will be willing to break up a centre-back pairing that has been impressive this season.
Debuchy did not feature in the Euro’s either, but has been training with Arsenal and could fill in at right-back should Wenger need him.
Gabriel Paulista
Gabriel has only played two games this season, both of which have come in the EFL Cup so he is likely to be a little rusty.
However, the Brazilian has played as a right-back before at both Vitoria and Villareal, and will be able to fill in should Arsene Wenger need him.
While he will not contribute anything close to what Bellerin does going forward, he will add some steel to the Arsenal back-line which could be useful against a Mourinho side.
Carl Jenkinson
Carl Jenkinson is the obvious candidate to fill in for Hector Bellerin. Jenkinson was a regular in the side when he was on loan at West Ham last season, until a knee injury ended his season.
He earned plaudits for his performance against Reading in the EFL Cup season, and also made one appearance in the UEFA Champions League.
Jenkinson is also a player that loves attacking, but it is his defensive side which will concern Arsenal fans.
The right-back is prone to lapses in concentration and is often caught out of possession, so Wenger will be hoping he is at his best come Saturday.