Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has been ruled out with a serious ankle injury for the remainder of the season.
Mari arrived at the club in January alone, signed on a loan deal from Brazilian side Flamengo with the possibility of making the transfer permanent in the summertime.
The Spaniard made his second appearance on Wednesday night against Manchester City when he was forced to retire in the 24th minute.
This knock appears to have been worse than expected at first, with David Ornstein claiming that the ankle injury would rule Mari out for the rest of the campaign in 2019/20.
Owing to an ankle injury, Granit Xhaka was also forced to withdraw against City, but his condition isn’t as bad and the midfielder could return to the fold before the season.
Mari ‘s replacement at Etihad Stadium was David Luiz who suffered one of the Premier League’s worst losses in recent memory as Mikel Arteta ‘s side slumped to a 3-0 loss. Luiz committed a mistake for the Citizens’ opening goal before awarding a penalty for their second, a foul that also won him a red card.
The Brazilian apologized for his distressing performance after the game but the former Chelsea man may have played his last game for the club with his contract set to expire at the end of this month. The result means that Arsenal is now five points clear of fifth-placed Manchester United, a spot that should be sufficient to qualify for the Champions League this season due to City’s pending competition ban.
The next game for Arteta and Arsenal is Saturday as they fly to Sussex to take on Brighton. Rob Holding is in line to be featured after recovering from a lockout injury.
