Arsenal hit by striker blow

Arsenal’s bid for glory domestically and in Europe could be affected as Robin van Persie is to be out for at least six weeks after suffering an ankle injury while on international duty.

Arsene Wenger will feel aggrieved that his forward sustained ankle ligament damage after only ten minutes of Holland’s international friendly against Italy.

Van Persie landed in an awkward manner on his right ankle after he was challenged by Giorgio Chiellini and a scan to assess the injury luckily found that surgery was not necessary.

The Dutch forward, who has scored eight goals this season and made the same number of assists, is expected to be out for around six weeks and will miss vital Premier League games, including the one against leaders Chelsea on November 29th.

He will also be out for Arsenal’s remaining Champions League group games, however the club are all but secure in their qualification after their recent 4-1 win over AZ Alkmaar.

After the Italy game, a Dutch Football Association official confirmed to the BBC that van Persie had suffered a “serious injury”.

“It’s impossible to put an exact timeframe on it because some players heal more quickly than others. It’s not a short-term injury,”

Arsenal are set to be short of strikers as Nicklas Bendtner is also expected to be missing for around a month after undergoing minor surgery on his groin last week.