Bukayo Saka will be sidelined until at least March after surgery on his hamstring, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has said.
Arsenal moved back into second place in the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over Ipswich at the Emirates – their first game without Saka after the England winger tore his right hamstring in the 5-0 win -1 against Crystal Palace last weekend.
Ahead of Friday's game, Arteta said Saka, 23, would be sidelined for “several weeks”, but speaking in the moments after seeing a side win that will keep pressure on leaders Liverpool, Arteta gave a grizzlier timetable for his star.
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Sky Sports News' Danyal Khan and Nick Wright look at how Arsenal fared in their first game without star man Bukayo Saka against Ipswich.
“He has had a procedure and everything went well, but unfortunately he will be out for several weeks,” Arteta said.
“It will be more than two months. I don't know how much longer. It will depend on how the scar starts to heal, the first week or two, and on that movement. It is very difficult to say
“It will be the team that will replace Bukayo. There were times where it flowed well tonight and times where you could see that there is still work to be done. But I'm sure we're going to do it that. We have to trust the team and not the individual.”
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Highlights from the Premier League match between Arsenal and Ipswich
The length of Saka's injury will be a major blow for Arteta, who is aiming to keep an eye on Arsenal's first Premier League title in two decades.
Without Saka, and in the Gunners' last game of 2024, Kai Havertz scored the only goal of the game midway through the opening period.
Gabriel, Havertz and Martin Odegaard all scored chances to put Arsenal ahead in the second half, but their win will take them back to within six points of leaders Liverpool – having played one game more than the Reds – and clear point from Chelsea after their boxing. A day trip to Fulham.
Gabriel responds after sending a close range header wide of the Ipswich goal
Arteta continued: “I'm very happy with the win and the clean sheet and big parts of the game. They are difficult against them and we are playing so many games.
“You see teams win by small margins. Today we could have made that margin bigger but we didn't and we kept our focus in the last few minutes to defend well.
“We should have scored more. We had some big openings in the second half, Gabriel's big header from one yard, but the team was consistent and didn't concede anything and that's something that gives us the always have a chance to win games.”
Arsenal play against Brentford on New Year's Day. Second-from-bottom Ipswich, three points adrift of safety, host Chelsea on Monday night.
Ipswich suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at home to Newcastle in the game before their trip to the Emirates, and this marked their fifth defeat in six games.
“It was a good step back in the right direction for us,” said boss Kieran McKenna. “We didn't hit our standards against Newcastle. We knew today we had to be quick and we did.”
Analysis: Arteta has work to do to find a formula without Saka
Sky Sports' Nick Wright at the Emirates Stadium:
Arteta promised Arsenal would be “different” without Saka. He knows he doesn't have a direct replacement for the 23-year-old. According to this evidence, however, it may take some time to find a working formula without it when he starts a long time on the side.
Martin Odegaard hits the target against Ipswich
Martinelli was chosen to take over Arsenal's right-back role after moving on following Saka's withdrawal from the win at Crystal Palace but it was difficult for him not to recording one shot, creating chances or even finishing dribbles.
The goal came from the other side of the pitch, with Trossard bursting away from Ben Johnson and sending an attractive cross into the six-yard box, where Havertz pounced. But Arsenal continued to direct a higher proportion of attacks down the right.
Arsenal sent 49 percent of their attacks down the right
Martinelli wasn't the only one they were looking at. Martin Odegaard provided support and Arteta's front line was more fluid than usual, with Gabriel Jesus and Havertz also appearing on that side, as well as switching positions with each other before Jesus was replaced.
Their movement caused problems for Ipswich at times, but Arsenal generally struggled to carve out the openings, apart from a spell in the second half when they crossed the visitors' goal.
Havertz ready to stand up – but others will have to follow his lead
Sky Sports' Ben Grounds at the Emirates Stadium:
“It's true you can't score five every week, and there was a level of satisfaction in the voices of the home supporters as they chanted '1-0 to Arsenal' at the final whistle.
“This turned out to be a terrible performance that Mikel Arteta will not worry about, in the middle of a complex series of games. Add a second and move on to the next one.
“It's a game you won't remember for long but it's one that Arsenal finally won thanks to Kai Havertz's run off the ball.
“The German was rewarded just for not standing still. Later, his indolence would lead to a booking, but without Saka, it was vital that he continue his impressive run through 2024.
His decisive strike was his 24th goal of the calendar year – just four shy of Saka. As long as the Starboy is out injured, Havertz needs to continue that flow to find the net.”
