Arsenal fear Bukayo Saka could be out for a minimum of six weeks with the quadriceps injury he sustained in Wednesday’s Champions League game against Bayern Munich, which ended 2-2 at the Allianz Arena.
The 25-year-old will undergo an MRI scan on Friday afternoon to better assess the problem. Fluid around the affected muscle has made the diagnosis difficult, but club medics estimate, after early examinations, that Saka will miss at least six weeks and that the absence could be even longer.
If those early concerns are realized, he will miss a series of key games for the Gunners, as well as England’s upcoming UEFA Nations League matches against Croatia and Spain. He will also miss Saturday’s home Premier League match against Everton, where second-placed Arsenal hoped to close a three-point gap on leaders Manchester City.
“We need a few more scans and opinions from the specialists,” said Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta.
“When a player has to walk off the pitch, he is struggling to walk without any pain, and is restricted to movement; it is not a good sign. Let’s be a little bit patient so we can give a definitive assessment.
“He’s got another MRI as there was quite a lot of fluid in the area so it was quite difficult to understand the extent of the injury. We will know more tomorrow.”
A Difficult Run of Fitness Problems
The Arsenal academy product has had fitness issues in recent months. His game time was managed at the end of last season and at the World Cup with England because of an Achilles injury he suffered in March. He missed the March international break and seven games for the Gunners, but returned to help them win the Premier League title for the first time in 22 years.
Saka started the Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain but was substituted after 54 minutes. He started only three of England’s eight games at the World Cup, scoring a hat-trick in the 6-4 third-place win over France.
Saka also had surgery on a hamstring injury he picked up in December 2024, which kept him out for 101 days in the 2024-25 season. He made 49 appearances as Arsenal won the title last term despite a stop-start campaign. Beyond the Achilles problem, he pulled out of a January game against Leeds with a hip injury sustained in the warm-up, and a separate hamstring problem sidelined him for about four weeks.
Questions Over Saka’s Robustness
Needing follow-up scans and possibly being out for up to eight weeks is a major blow for Arteta and Arsenal. The Gunners boss had recently spoken about Saka adapting his positioning to become more of a regular goalscorer. The winger has scored four goals in 11 appearances so far this season.
Now that Saka has suffered another muscle injury, there are questions about whether he still has the robustness that made him a certain starter for Arsenal. Arteta acknowledged that Saka’s robustness and availability have “certainly been different in the last year or so.”
Arsenal tried to sign a world-class forward to strengthen their frontline in the summer but were unsuccessful in their pursuits of Vinicius Jr and Julian Alvarez. They did bring in Greece international Christos Tzolis, but he is currently injured as well. That leaves Noni Madueke, Eberechi Eze and 16-year-old Max Dowman as the alternative wing options. Dowman has had limited minutes this season, but Arteta spoke glowingly of his talent and his ability to impact matches.