Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger lambasted Norwich City defender Ryan Bennett for shoving Alexis Sanchez during a 1-1 draw last weekend, arguing his star player “could’ve been killed”.
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Cazorla sustained the injury in the second half of Sunday’s draw with Norwich, with initial scans revealing that the 30-year-old damaged his medial knee ligaments.
However, the concerns seem significant as Wenger said it’s possible Cazorla could be sidelined until March, when asked by present journalists.
Statistics emerged this week showing Arsenal have had more injured players since the summer of 2010 than any other Premier League team.
“But, in the Champions League game, I will have to be a bit more professional in the way we manage the game”. There were five days between Dinamo Zagreb and Norwich but no-one suggested he could hurt his hamstring or his back when he was pushed into the camera.
“When Sanchez was pushed into the boards on the side of the field, that did not shock anybody”, Wenger said.
Wenger told Friday’s news conference that he would happily take the blame for Arsenal’s injury worries but denied suggestions he often pushes players too hard to play when unfit.
“Look, I tested with him before the game, with a medical”, he said.
Wenger was also unsure when captain Mikel Arteta will return from injury.
Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla became the two latest names to be added to a lengthy injury list and will be missing when the rejuvenated Black Cats visit the Emirates Stadium.
“If you want to blame me, I have no problem”. “I do, but there was not an obvious mistake to select him before the game”.
Sunderland lose Jermain Defoe and Sebastian Larsson to injuries but do have Billy Jones available again after serving a one-game ban.
Arsene Wenger lauds his side’s ability to overcome injuries and adversity against Sunderland. Allardyce said: “We have gone a long way towards trying to get out of the position we are in, but we have still an terrible long way to go”.
“At the moment, I’m more focused on responding tomorrow”.
“I said: ‘Santi, are you all right?’ he said he was okay”.
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“Sometimes, you don’t know how bad it is – he did not know how bad it was either”.
