Double blow for Gunners
25 Jan 2007 - 17:33:18
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has revealed Aleksandr Hleb will be out for four weeks with a hamstring injury while broken foot victim Robin van Persie might not return until at least mid-April.
Substitute Hleb limped out of Wednesday's 2-2 Carling Cup semi-final first leg draw with Tottenham and scans have revealed the Belarus international faces around one month on the sidelines.
However, the news surrounding van Persie is not so optimistic with the Holland striker set for a prolonged spell out of action.
The 23-year-old forward was expected to be sidelined until early March after breaking the fifth metatarsal on his right foot in Sunday's 2-1 victory against Manchester United.
But Wenger believes the injury could keep the frontman out for up to ten weeks in a blow to the Arsenal's Premiership and Champions League hopes.
Speaking about Hleb, he told the club's official website: "I think he will be out longer than I thought last night (Wednesday). It will be a good four weeks.
"That is the disappointing side of last night. It puts our performance into perspective. You don't want to lose players in January because, if you lose them for a long time, then their season can be over."
On the subject of van Persie, he added: "Ideally you would say six to eight weeks but as well it could be ten.
"That means April and you are close to the end of the season and you'll need to get back to your best level. I hope it will be six weeks but that is really optimistic."
Meanwhile, Jeremie Aliadiere (back) and Emmanuel Eboue (ankle) also picked up knocks against Spurs and are major doubts for Sunday's FA Cup clash with Bolton Wanderers.
