Wenger Confirms Injury Set-Back But Offers Positive Update On Ramsey

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has suffered a setback in his recovery from a hamstring injury but Aaron Ramsey is due to return against Dinamo Zagreb next week.

Oxlade-Chamberlain hasn’t featured since he was forced off during the opening stages of our Capital One Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday last month but there were hopes the attacker would be back in contention after the international break.

However, Wenger has now revealed that the 22-year-old suffered a minor set-back last week and will now not only miss today’s Premier League trip to West Brom but he’s also set to sit out Tuesday’s crucial Champions League clash with Dinamo Zagreb.

The news comes as a big blow as we have limited options in attack at present and the squad is being stretched to it’s limit, but the boss is hopeful Oxlade-Chamberlain will be fit to return against Norwich next weekend.

There is some slightly better news regarding the fitness of Aaron Ramsey as although he too will miss today’s game against West Brom, the Welshman is due to resume full training on Monday and should be available to take on Zagreb in midweek.

The midfielder has been on the sidelines since pulling his hamstring during our Champions League win over Bayern Munich on October 20 and his return will be a major boost for the squad as he’s been sorely missed in recent weeks.

The final update from Wenger concerned Theo Walcott and the England international is still two weeks away from returning from a calf problem that he picked up at Hillsborough last month.

Wenger is quoted as saying by Sky Sports:

“He [Oxlade-Chamberlain] had a slight little setback on Monday but we checked by scan and there is nothing wrong but he is still a fraction short for Saturday.

“Ramsey will be back in full training on Monday and can play on Tuesday and Chamberlain I think against Norwich. Theo is ahead of schedule at the moment but he is still two weeks away.”

We head into the West Brom game today sitting level on points with Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table so we can move three points clear with a win ahead of their clash with Liverpool later this evening.