From broken metatarsals to knee ligament tears – Robin van Persie’s Arsenal injury timeline

ANALYSIS
By Oliver Yew

Arsenal are facing up to the prospect of losing star striker Robin van Persie for three weeks after he injured his knee in the League Cup final defeat to Birmingham.

The Dutch forward sustained a knock while netting the equalising goal in the first half, but carried on playing before he was forced off with 20 minutes remaining.

The 27-year-old, who has scored 13 goals since the turn of the year, will now be without their key forward for crucial Premier League matches, the Champions League clash with Barcelona and a possible FA Cup quarter-final with Manchester United.

The next couple of weeks could make or break Arsene Wenger’s side’s season and, as in the past, they will have to cope without Van Persie.

The Dutchman’s absence, as well as his prolific scoring, is something that Arsenal fans have probably grown accustomed to. He has missed 42.75 per cent of the club’s league games, playing only 109 of a possible 255 matches, since signing from Feyenoord in 2004.

And without him the stats do not make good reading: Arsenal’s win ratio minus the striker in the Premier League is 56%, compared to 78% with him in the side.

During his first two-and-a-half seasons at the club the Dutchman made 110 appearances, but since January 2007 he has been restricted to just 108 matches.

After the latest setback, Goal.com UK takes a look at the injury problems which have plagued Van Persie over the years…

Familiar sight | Van Persie’s career has been blighted by injuries

January 21, 2007
Arsenal 2-1 Manchester United

Injury: Fractured metatarsal
Time out: Five months

The striker got the equaliser as Arsenal came from behind to beat Manchester United in a remarkable second-half turn around. But the goal and the win came at a price as Van Persie fractured his fifth metatarsal when scoring. He was initally ruled out for just six weeks but ended up missing the rest of the season, a portent of things to come.

October 17, 2007
Holland 2-0 Slovenia

Injury: Knee
Time out: Two months

After another promising start to the season – with seven goals in 12 appearances for the in all competitions – the Dutchman broke down on international duty. It was a sight which has become all too regular for Arsenal fans and after returning in late December it only took two games for the striker to pick up another injury.

January 9, 2008
Arsenal 1-1 Tottenham

Injury: Thigh
Time out: Two months

After two months out of action Van Persie returned for the 1-0 win over Chelsea, but bad luck struck again in his next match. The Dutchman hobbled out of action in the first leg of this League Cup semi-final against rivals Spurs with a thigh injury. Again the striker was initally ruled out for only a short period of time, but this projection turned out to be incorrect – a recurring theme.

November 14, 2009
Italy 0-0 Holland

Injury: Ankle ligament damage
Time out: Five months

In what was a volatile match in Pescara the Italians used a heavy-handed approach against the Dutch and it was felt hardest by the Arsenal man, who fell heavily on his right ankle following a tough challenge from Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. The Dutch striker was expected to be out for up to six weeks but after a number of failed treatments, including the use of horse placenta to heal the damage, he was missing for five months of the the season. He sat on the sidelines for 30 matches and without him Arsenal’s trophy challenge faltered yet again.

August 28, 2010
Blackburn 1-2 Arsenal

Injury: Ankle
Time out: Two months

The Dutchman played a huge part in Arsenal’s impressive early season form and set-up Theo Walcott for the Gunners’ first goal at Ewood Park. But what occurred next was the familiar sight of Van Persie hobbling off the field after hurting his left ankle. An initial estimate of a four-week absence turned out to be rather optimistic.

February 28, 2011
Arsenal 1-2 Birmingham

Injury: Knee ligament tear
Time out: Estimated four weeks

The League Cup final was a massive chance for the club to end its six-year trophy drought, and the pressure was on stand-in captain Van Persie. In the absence of injured skipper Cesc Fabregas and winger Theo Walcott, the Gunners were looking to Van Persie for inspiration.

It looked to be going to plan as the Dutchman cancelled out Nikola Zigic’s early striker with a sweet volley, but in the process he injured his knee. The 27-year-old played on but was finally replaced after in the second half and has now been ruled out for three weeks, though fans will worry as similar projected downtimes have been wide of the mark.