Arsenal midfielder Louie Copley has confirmed he suffered an ACL injury during the team’s 3–1 defeat to Real Betis.
Copley, 19, featured against both Betis and Girona off the bench, seeking to establish himself while the likes of Declan Rice, Mikel Merino and club captain Martin Ødegaard continued to rest after the World Cup.
He came off the bench at half time against Betis, helping out at right back, but was forced off just 11 minutes later with what now has been diagnosed as the dreaded ACL injury.
“Words can’t describe how I’m feeling right now, to making my preseason debut for the team I’ve grown up supporting to finding out I’ve ruptured my ACL,” he reflected on social media.
“The road ahead won’t be easy but I’ll give everything to come back stronger and better.”
An injury at this stage of the year means Copley may well be healthy enough to play in the later stages of the coming season, although no expectations should be put on the teenager ahead of what will be a tough, lengthy road to recovery.
Arsenal’s Right Back Woes Continue
Minutes in midfield were always going to be hard for Copley this season—Bruno Guimarães’s arrival only adding to a crowded group in the middle of the park—but he seemed up for the challenge of making an impact at right back.
Arsenal are used to injuries at right back, where Jurriën Timber has missed months with a groin issue and Ben White has battled his own lengthy fitness problems in the past. It is White who has been starting this summer, with Copley given the chance to establish himself as cover before his gruesome knee injury.
The Gunners’ issues are not even reserved for right back. At the heart of defense, William Saliba is facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a back problem, which has seen Cristhian Mosquera, another option at right back, drafted into center back alongside Gabriel.
That instability at the back has been evident in preseason. Sunday’s 3–2 defeat to Borussia Dortmund made it six goals conceded in their last two games, with the vast majority of the goals coming when Arsenal had their strongest defenders on the pitch.
One key absence this summer has been that of goalkeeper David Raya, who is only just preparing to make his return to training after Spain’s World Cup triumph this summer. Stand-in stopper Kepa Arrizabalaga has failed to impress and could leave the club in the final weeks of the transfer window following the arrival of Illan Meslier on a free transfer.
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