Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed that striker Lucas Pérez will be out for eight weeks with a ligament injury.
The 28-year-old forward was signed from Deportivo for a fee of 17 million pounds during the summer transfer window and has struggled to hold down a regular first-team place at Emirates so far. Wenger has decided to use the Chilean winger, Alexis Sánchez, as his striker this season.
Furthermore, Pérez will be disappointed with the fact that his injury has come at a time when Olivier Giroud is just returning from his injury. If the French striker can score a few goals now, Pérez’s first team hopes could well be damaged beyond repair.
Pérez will be sidelined until Christmas after a tackle from Reading’s Danzell Gravenberch during Tuesday’s EFL Cup tie left him with damaged ligaments. Wenger has confirmed the injury during his pre-match press conference. The only boost for him is the return of Aaron Ramsey. The Welsh midfielder has recovered fully and could return against Sunderland this weekend.
Wenger was quoted by The Guardian:
It’s very frustrating because he worked very hard to get there. Of course he is absolutely gutted, because it’s an injury coming from nowhere, and a stupid one, because it was a deliberate kick. It’s a similar tackle to [Granit] Xhaka, but there was no red card. But the red card would not have helped Pérez. What is most important is that he’s out for six to eight weeks.
Pérez will miss a few crucial matches in the Premier League, as well as the Champions League over the next two months. Arsenal will be without his services for the clashes against Tottenham, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain. The new signing has started just once against Southampton this season and has scored twice against Nottingham Forest in the previous round of the EFL Cup.
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