The Gunners received another fitness blow after it was revealed Francis Coquelin is facing a lengthy spell out of the team after sustaining a knee injury in the defeat at West Brom on Saturday.
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Coquelin picked up the injury during the 2-1 defeat against West Brom on Saturday, and although they are waiting to learn the full extent of the problem, it looks like ligament damage.
The midfielder lost his footing to balloon a late spot-kick over as Arsenal missed the chance to go top of the Barclays Premier League or even claim a point at The Hawthorns.
Wenger considers Calum Chambers as a possible replacement for Coquelin with Mathieu Flamini being another option for the vacant midfield spot.
“Sometimes this is a good opportunity for other players to turn up and do the job”.
Speaking on Coquelin’s injury to the club website ahead of Tuesday’s game with Dinamo Zagreb, Wenger said: “Coquelin and (Mikel) Arteta are out”.
The Gunners boss added: “I must say we have been hit very hard in November. I could feel that instead of pushing on, we became vulnerable”.
Arsenal fans, can you win the Premier League without Coquelin?
“We showed great resilience to hold on – something we’ve not managed to do a few times this year when we’ve been in winning positions, especially at home”.
Wenger said: “I’m always a bit cautious because we had lots of bad surprises on the scans, but it is at least two months”. They are now in third on three points with two games to play, six behind Bayern Munich and Olympiakos who are first and second respectively.
Wenger insists Arsenal can still salvage their calamitous Champions League soccer campaign as they prepare for tonight’s do-or-die showdown with Dinamo Zagreb.
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Coquelin, 24, has made 54 appearances for Arsenal since 2008 and mostly plays a defensive role.
