Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has expressed concern over the injury to Victor Gyokeres and has confirmed that the striker will miss the club’s UCL tie against Slavia Prague on Tuesday.
The Gunners travel to Czech Republic for their fourth European match of the 2025-26 season without their star striker, who was ruled out of the clash following an injury last weekend.
The Swedish forward enjoyed an impressive 45 minutes in the 2-0 win over Burnley, scoring the opening goal and playing a part in Declan Rice’s second, but was substituted at halftime due to a muscular injury.
Speaking ahead of the clash, Arteta revealed that the 27-year-old did not travel with the squad and expressed worry over the injury that has hindered his participation.
“He’s definitely not available. He hasn’t trained today and we need to do some more tests and scans over the next few days to understand the full extent of the injury. This game, he’s not available”, Arteta revealed.
“I am concerned. Because he hasn’t had many muscular issues, and he needed to leave the pitch and he was feeling something.
“It’s never a good sign for a player who is explosive. We are digging in a little bit more to understand the extent and where we are in terms of the injury”, the Spaniard added.
The striker joined the club from Sporting Lisbon in the summer and was beginning to find form with three goals in his last three outings.
Gyokeres joins Arsenal’s long injury list which also includes the likes of Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Noni Madueke.
Spanish midfielder Mikel Merino, who played in the number nine role last season, could come back into the squad to replace the Sweden international.
Arsenal face Slavia Prague on Tuesday evening, hoping to continue their 100% start to the UCL campaign.
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