Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta admitted he is worried about Viktor Gyokeres after the forward picked up a muscle problem during the 2-0 victory at Burnley.
The Swedish international, who joined the Gunners in the summer for £64 million, gave his side the lead at Turf Moor but was replaced at the interval.
Since that match, the 27-year-old has missed training sessions and will not travel with the team for the Champions League clash away to Slavia Prague on Tuesday evening.
When asked if the striker would feature midweek, Arteta was clear: “No, he’s definitely not available.”
Scans to reveal extent of the problem
Arteta said further medical checks will be carried out to determine how serious the issue is. The club’s medical staff plan to run additional tests and scans in the coming days.
“He hasn’t trained today,” the manager told BBC Sport. “We need to do some more tests and scans in the next few days to understand the extent of the injury.”
The Spaniard confirmed that Gyokeres remains unavailable until the club receives a clearer diagnosis.
Boss expresses concern over explosive forward
When questioned if the problem was minor, Arteta did not sound optimistic.
“I am concerned because he hasn’t had many muscular issues, and he needed to leave the pitch feeling something,” he explained. “That’s never a good sign, especially for a player who relies so much on his explosiveness.”
Arteta added that the team is still assessing the injury and will update supporters once more information becomes available.
Several attackers sidelined
The Arsenal manager also revealed that injuries continue to affect his squad, with seven players currently unavailable.
Among those missing are attacking options Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, Noni Madueke, and Gabriel Jesus, leaving the team short of forward choices ahead of a crucial run of fixtures.
