Arsenal face major headache over most irreplaceable star after freak injury

Allow Exco Player contentThis content is provided by Exco Player and may use cookies or similar technologies. Please click 'Allow and Continue' below to load the content.

Your weekly briefing on Arsenal, featuring team news and expert analysis from Matt Verri

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

There is seemingly no part of the matchday itinerary that does not pose a risk to Arsenal players.

Mikel Arteta revealed last season that the club had been forced to investigate their warm-up routines, after four players picked up issues ahead of matches in the space of six months.

Now even that looks fairly mundane in comparison to the news that filtered out of the Emirates Stadium on Saturday evening.

Not one but two Arsenal players managed to suffer injuries on the pitch after the game against Leeds.

Arteta confirmed on Monday that it was more of a training session than just a warm-down, designed to get players who have had limited minutes this season up to speed.

Piero Hincapie and Martin Zubimendi both came away with ankle problems.

Bizarrely, and much to the irritation of Arteta, Hincapie was given a piggy back off the pitch by goalkeeper Illan Meslier after being unable to put weight on his ankle, rather than being assisted by one of the club’s medical staff.

Free spirit: Riccardo Calafiori has a unique role in Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal teamGettyHincapie now faces a spell on the sidelines, one that is expected to see him miss at least the next few matches.

That is a major headache for Arteta. The left-back position is a crucial one for this team and Hincapie’s absence will complicate matters.

Riccardo Calafiori has become an absolutely vital cog in this Arsenal machine. No player is given more freedom than the Italian, so much so that he holds real attacking responsibility.

“He is a free bird,” Arteta said last month. “If you put strings on him, it doesn’t work.

“There are players you need to allow to express themselves, to give them room, to give them space and not restrict them to certain areas, because that’s where they flow and make others flow.”

Calafiori scored the equaliser for Arsenal against Leeds on Saturday to spark the comeback. He has five goal involvements in 10 matches for club and country this season.

The challenge for Calafiori has never been making an impact on the pitch, though he has taken that to another level in the early months of this campaign.

Calafiori is potentially the most irreplaceable player in the Arsenal squad

His issue has been staying fit. In his first season at the club, Calafiori made only 11 league starts. Last season, he was responsible for two of those late withdrawals in the warm-up.

Arsenal star denied wondergoal as forgotten Chelsea signing thrives

Arsenal injury update: Zubimendi, Hincapie, Tzolis latest return dates

Full Lille squad for Arsenal clash revealed as Giroud decision made

Art After Dark is back with an exciting calendar of cultural events

Calafiori is unique in that he is potentially the most irreplaceable player in the Arsenal squad. The drop-off in quality when the likes of Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard are unavailable is significant, but the team can still play in a similar way.

That is not the case with Calafiori. No other player can offer anything like his attributes from left-back. The timing of his runs, the instinct of where to arrive in the final third, and his execution in the opposition’s box, is remarkable.

It is why Calafiori has started every league match so far this season and not played a single minute in any other competition.

His fitness has been carefully managed and the results have been positive so far. That was helped by Calafiori having the summer off because Italy did not qualify for the World Cup, and he spent it backpacking around South America.

There is a danger that Hincapie’s injury puts extra strain on Calafiori but Arteta must guard against that and find other solutions.

Sidelined: Piero Hincapie was one of two Arsenal players injured after the win over LeedsGettyTuesday’s match against Lille is one Arsenal should be confident of winning even without the Italian. With six more league phase matches to come, there is no real jeopardy.

Whether it means starting Myles Lewis-Skelly at left-back or finding a more creative solution than that, protecting Calafiori should be the priority.

Arsenal travel to face Bayern Munich next Wednesday. Assuming Calafiori stays fit and is selected to face Nottingham Forest and Everton in the league either side of that trip to Germany, it could be the first time the Italian is asked to start three matches in a week this season.

That is something Calafiori only managed twice last season and Arsenal will have to carefully pick and choose their moments to increase the defender’s workload.

With Hincapie out, the temptation might be to push Calafiori. It should really, though, be a time for even more caution.