Arsenal defender to miss the rest of the season

Arsenal have announced that Japanese right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery for a knee injury. 

Tomiyasu was substituted early in Arsenal’s UEFA Europa League round of 16 second-leg loss to Sporting CP at the Emirates Stadium, and an update on his injury situation shows that he will not play a further part in the Gunners' 2022/23 season. 

The club announced in a statement released on Twitter that Tomiyasu’s injury had drawn the curtains on his season and that he would be expected back for Arsenal’s pre-season ahead of the 2023/24 season. 

Despite being an important part of the Arsenal set-up, Tomiyasu has had an injury-laden Arsenal career since joining the North London club in the summer of 2021. 

He was injured for two months in his first season at the club, and missed spells this season before being ruled out with this latest knee injury. 

Arsenal will be looking to English centre-back turned full-back to take Tomiyasu’s place as he has done in the Japanese’s previous absences. White showed that he can ably replace Tomiyasu, assisting a goal in Arsenal’s 4-1 rout of Crystal Palace.