Mikel Arteta has confirmed defender Shkodran Mustafi will miss the start of next season and Arsenal may have to dip into the transfer market to cope with his absence.
The German injured his hamstring against Manchester City last week as Arsenal defeated them 2-0 in the FA Cup semi-final.
Mustafi has since undergone a scan on the injury and the diagnosis is not good, with the centre-back set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Arsenal are already without Calum Chambers and Pablo Mari and Arteta has admitted Mustafi’s absence may force them to dip into the market.
“It looks a really nasty injury again,” he said. “We have lost Calum Chambers the week after I arrived here, we lost Pablo as well for three months.
“Now we’ve lost Musti, so at the back we’re really touched and short. Musti has been playing really consistently and at a really good level with me.
“He pulled the tendon off the bone in his hamstring and that’s normally a lot of weeks. I already mentioned three central defenders that are not available and we haven’t had them available for a long time during the season. And we will have to address that.”
There is better news for Arsenal on the injury front as goalkeeper Bernd Leno is hoping to return to full training next week.
The German, however, will not win his place back for the FA Cup final as Emi Martinez - who has excelled in his absence - is set to start.
“Emi today had another good performance,” said Arteta. “Bernd is still recovering from his injuries, so Emi is the one.
"In football next week is too much. Let’s hope that he (Martinez) is available for the game and if that’s the case he will start.”
