Arsenal forward Robin Van Persie will miss the rest of the season after finding out he will need an operation on his injured ankle ligaments. The 26 year old Dutchman was initially expected to be out for six weeks. However, scans have revealed the injury is worse than originally feared.
“Robin will undergo surgery next week in Amsterdam to reconstruct the ligaments,” said a club statement.
“The club’s medical team anticipate that a full recovery will take between four and five months.”
Van Persie picked up the injury in a pointless friendly against Italy after a heavy challenge from Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini.
It’s a massive blow to Arsenal’s title hopes as he had been a key member of the Arsene Wengers’ new 4-3-3 formation.
“They’re not title contenders without him in the side” Said Paul Merson on Soccer Saturday.
Arsenal fans feel the club is jinxed with Nicklas Bendtner out for 3 weeks and both left backs out for at least 2 months.
Today’s derby with Chelsea could prove to be a pivotal game in the Premier League. If Arsenal win the lead will be cut to 5 points, with a game in hand, also confirming that their squad is good enough to compete on all fronts, a defeat however, would see Chelsea’s lead extend to 11 points, a gap that would surly end Arsenals title hopes going into Christmas.
