Report: Arsenal star now set to be out for at least two weeks following injury on international duty

Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori suffered a knee injury in Italy’s UEFA Nations League quarter-final first-leg loss to Germany on Thursday night.

In the 92nd minute, the Arsenal star slipped awkwardly whilst tracking back and immediately held his left knee before going to the sidelines for treatment.

Calafiori was not substituted, as Luciano Spalletti had already used up all his substitutions, but the full-time whistle went not long after.

Spalletti said after the game on Thursday that Calafiori felt “something strange in his knee”.

The Gunners ace has undergone tests which have confirmed an injury, and the Italian media has reported on how long he could now be out for.

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Riccardo Calafiori expected to miss out on Fulham and Everton games with Real Madrid availability a doubt

On Friday, Italy’s official X account confirmed that Calafiori sustained an injury to his left knee and is now set to return to Arsenal.

Italian outlet Pazzi Di Fanta reported that Calafiori has suffered a first-degree to second-degree lesion to the collateral ligament of the knee

They said this kind of problem usually results in two to three weeks on the sidelines.

As a result, Calafiori is set to miss Italy’s quarter-final second leg against Germany, as well as a few Arsenal games.

In the best-case scenario, Calafiori is expected to miss the Premier League games against Fulham and Everton, according to the report.

He would then try to be available for the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final first-leg against Real Madrid on 8 April, or for the weekend league trip to Brentford.

Why Riccardo Calafiori’s left knee will always be a concern among Arsenal and Italy fans

Calafiori has luckily avoided a serious injury and he should be back and available in the next few weeks.

Any issues with Calafiori’s left knee will always spark concern initially, as he suffered a serious injury when he was in Roma’s youth team.

At just 16 years of age, a challenge from an opposition player during a youth match saw Calafiori tear every ligament in his left knee, as well as the meniscus and the articular capsule.

The injury was so severe that doctors were not optimistic about his future in the sport.

However, Calafiori used that as motivation to make a full recovery, going on to make his professional debut for his hometown club in August 2020.

He said earlier this year, as per the Arsenal website: “To be honest, I was lucky that I was so young, because I was 16.

“My only thoughts were coming back from the injury and just playing again, because, as you mentioned before, they said I would probably stop my career before it’s even started.

“So I just want to play again and that’s it.”

Calafiori has been a sensation at Arsenal and Mikel Arteta is delighted with him, as are his teammates and the fans, so there will be a collective sigh of relief among everyone connected with the player.