Arsenal suffer devastating blow as extent of Takehiro Tomiyasu injury confirmed
Takehiro Tomiyasu suffered a knee injury during Arsenal’s season-ending Europa League game against Sporting CP last week and underwent surgery to fix the problem
Arsenal have confirmed Takehiro Tomiyasu will miss the rest of the season after suffering a serious knee injury during the Gunners’ clash with Sporting CP last Thursday.
The right-back limped away in the ninth minute of the Europa League round of 16 second leg after injuring himself in a tackle. Tomiyasu, who was replaced by Ben White, left Emirates Stadium on crutches and Mikel Arteta did not sound confident when asked about his condition.
After the game, he said, “Tomiyasu looks pretty serious in his reaction [away] and what he said to me, but of course it’s very early days.” The Japan international played no part in the penalty shoot-out defeat by Sporting and was also sidelined in the Gunners’ 4-1 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday.
It has now been confirmed that Tomiyasu will miss the rest of the season after undergoing “successful surgery” on the injury – and will no longer play a role in Arsenal’s title boost. The former Bologna defender is expected to return before pre-season to be back at the start of next season.
This will undoubtedly be a major blow to the Gunners’ title bid as Tomiyasu is a key figure in the Gunners’ dressing room despite having been used sparingly this season. He has featured in 21 of their 28 Premier League games, despite starting just six of them – with White often being favored at right-back.
Tomiyasu can also play at left-back but with Oleksandr Zinchenko and Kieran Tierney fighting for that spot, he didn’t have to step in. Across all competitions, Tomiyasu has made 32 appearances and can be satisfied with this position. He has done so with the Arsenal team this season.
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Last year, White praised teammate Tomiyasu for how he’s settled in at the Gunners after joining from Bologna. “Tomi is incredible,” said White. “He’s always focused, it’s an honor to play alongside him.
“Tomi does the simple things at a world-class level. He is very attentive and does not play carelessly. He understands English right from the start and speaks it as well as I do.”
Arsenal legend Martin Keown also praised Tomiyasu earlier this season, admitting he is the Gunners’ best defender through and through. This comes after he shone during a Europa League clash against PSV.
He told BT Sport: “Tomiyasu is probably Arsenal’s best defender, in a one-on-one situation. Check out how dominant he is in the air. He’s actually a big boy. You have addressed this issue [of Gakpo] very good.”