Mikel Arteta has suffered another injury, with Ethan Nwaneri being substituted at half-time during the 1-1 draw against Brighton due to a muscle problem.
The 17-year-old winger had opened the scoring in the 16th minute of the match, filling the gap left by Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling, who are both injured.
Nwaneri's impressive start at the Amex Stadium on Saturday afternoon marked his second consecutive match on the right flank. However, he did not return for the second half.
There was initial speculation that Arteta would replace the teenager after he was booked for wasting time.
But the Arsenal manager later revealed to BBC Match of the Day that Nwaneri had been withdrawn due to injury.
After the match, the Spaniard said: 'It's really bad news because I think we've lost him [Nwaneri]we had to take him off at half-time because of muscle problems.'
News of Nwaneri's injury comes as a blow to Arteta as he had described the 17-year-old as a suitable replacement for Saka as he continues to recover from a torn hamstring.
Asked whether Nwaneri was the most natural replacement for Saka ahead of Saturday's match against Brighton, Arteta said: “He is a player who can play in different positions.”
The Arsenal manager added: 'It's not a position he played a lot in when he was at academy level, but he can adapt to the demands we have in two or three positions.
“I think he did a really good job there.”
Saka had to be substituted after sustaining a hamstring injury during the first half of Arsenal's 5-1 win away to Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, December 21.
Shortly after the incident, Saka posted a photo of himself on Instagram after undergoing surgery and vowed to come back stronger. While Arteta confirmed the star would be out of action for 'many weeks'.
'It doesn't look good. He will be out for many weeks,” Arteta said. “It's a huge blow, but it will be a great exercise for us to overcome another challenge.”
Arteta further confirmed that Saka had torn his hamstring before insisting his medical staff were working hard to prevent such problems in the future.
“There are probably ways to prevent the injury,” Arteta added. There are many factors. We're looking at everything and what we can do differently.'
This isn't the first time Saka has suffered problems with that part of his right leg, as the winger missed several weeks of action in October.
That hamstring problem kept the 23-year-old out for 39 days, a period that also included the disappointing 2-0 defeat to Bournemouth.
Saka's recurrence of the injury is a huge blow for the Gunners, who are five points clear of the Premier League leaders and have clearly missed his presence on Saturday afternoon.
The Gunners are also without Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ben White, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Raheem Sterling due to injuries.
When asked about Sterling ahead of Saturday's match, Arteta said: 'I think he's starting to do some things on the pitch so that's great news.
'We want it available as quickly as possible. Let's see how he develops this week and then see if we can go next week.'
The Arsenal boss went on to discuss White and Tomiyasu, saying: 'Ben is still away for a few more weeks and Tomi has been doing some things on the pitch again.'
He added: 'But now that it's a long-term injury, we have to see how quickly Tomi can progress and how he responds.'
Arteta also spoke about having to manage Declan Rice's minutes as he has 'had some niggles in the last few games'.
The Gunners boss said: “Especially in his case, he plays so much football. We have nine games in this period this month and he has had some niggles in the last few games.”
Arteta added: 'Declan had to go and we have to manage every player and there are no exceptions.'
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