Arsenal dealt blow as Mikel Merino to miss three huge games after extent of injury revealed

Arsenal new boy Mikel Merino is set to be on the sidelines for nearly two months having picked up an injury in his first Gunners training session.

Merino joined Arsenal from Real Sociedad for £31.6m in the last week of the summer transfer window but was unable to make his debut in the 1-1 draw with Brighton on Saturday having fractured his shoulder in a collision with Gabriel Magalhaes in his first training session with his new teammates.

Asked about Merino’s injury ahead of the Gunners’ draw with Brighton on Saturday , Arteta said: “It’s very unfortunate. Yesterday (Thursday) he had a collision and he’s got a shoulder injury and it looks like he’ll be out for a few weeks.

“It was in his first session with us. It’s really bad luck, we were all excited, everything was looking good.

“He landed on the floor, Gabriel fell on top of him and it looks like he has a small fracture.

“He was in so much pain, we have to see. He’ll do more tests which will have more conclusive answers.”

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The Daily Mail now claim Merino will out until mid-October, likely meaning the Spain international’s debut for the club will come either against Bournemouth on October 20 or in the Champions League against Shakhtar Donetsk two days later.

Merino is set to miss seven more games for his new club, including Premier League clashes against Tottenham and Manchester City and the home tie in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain.

It’s a frustrating start for Merino, Arteta and the club in general, who will also be without Declan Rice for their next game against Spurs, after the England international was controversially sent off in the draw with Brighton.

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Rice, already booked for a wild challenge on Veltman in the first half, was shown his marching orders by referee Chris Kavanagh after he delayed the restart at a Brighton free-kick.

Arteta couldn’t believe the decision had been made:  “I was amazed. Amazed, amazed, amazed because of how inconsistent decisions can be.

“In the first half, there are two incidents and nothing happens. Then, in a non-critical area, the ball hits Declan (on the back of his leg), he turns around, he doesn’t see the player coming and he touches the ball.

“By law, he [the referee] can make that call, but then by law he needs to make the next call, which is red card so we play 10 vs 10. This is what amazed me. At this level it’s amazing.”

Arsenal have Jorginho and Leandro Trossard who can fill in Rice’s midfield position, while Kai Havertz played there last season but is currently the only fit centre forward the Gunners have due to Gabriel Jesus’ injury.

The Gunners also have highly rated teenage midfielders Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly in their ranks, with both on the bench against Brighton.

“Well, this is what happens,” Arteta said about the midfield crisis after they sold both Emile Smith Rowe and Fabio Vieira this summer. “We have to adapt to that context.

“That’s why we have other players that can fulfil that [role] and [I can] give that opportunity to somebody else.”