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An expected return date has been set for Eberechi Eze following his injury against Bayer Leverkusen.
Arsenal’s pursuit of a treble has been dealt a severe blow, with star playmaker Eberechi Eze expected to be sidelined for four to six weeks due to a severe calf injury.
The 27-year-old sustained the injury during Arsenal’s Champions League Round of 16 second-leg victory over Bayer Leverkusen last week, where he opened the scoring with a thunderous strike before being forced off midway through the second half.
Following initial assessments, manager Mikel Arteta confirmed the troubling timeline, which already forced Eze to miss Sunday’s 2-0 EFL Cup final defeat to Manchester City at Wembley Stadium.
Furthermore, the injury prompted his withdrawal from Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the current international break, ruling him out of World Cup preparation friendlies against Uruguay and Japan.
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Impact on Arsenal’s season
The absence of the summer signing leaves a glaring creative void on Arteta’s side. This vulnerability was heavily exposed against Manchester City, especially with captain Martin Ødegaard also dealing with a recent knee issue.
If sidelined for the full six weeks, Eze could miss up to eight crucial fixtures across three competitions. He is definitively ruled out of the FA Cup quarter-final against Southampton on April 4th, the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Sporting CP on April 7th, and a Premier League clash with Bournemouth, which comes right after.
He also remains a major doubt for the pivotal league showdown against title rivals Manchester City on April 19.