Reigning Premier League champions Arsenal have received some potentially encouraging news regarding centre-back William Saliba, as the French international may not need an operation for the back injury that has plagued him for months.
Saliba has played through the pain barrier for months
The 25-year-old had not only played through the pain barrier for the Gunners, but also played at the World Cup with France. However, the pain became too much for the defender in Les Bleus’ World Cup semi-final against Spain, when he had to go off injured after just half an hour.
The injury was more worrying, as there was no opponent near Saliba when he went down. According to reports, the defender told the French medical staff, “My back is gone”.
The injury meant that he didn’t appear in Les Bleus’ extraordinary 6-4 defeat to England in the third-place play-off game.
May not need surgery to cure the issue
It was initially thought that Saliba would need surgery to cure his back issues, which would have likely ruled him out of action for the rest of the calendar year.
However, reports from the French media claim that the centre-back may not need to go under the knife.
It is believed that Saliba could now receive an alternative course of treatment, with a long-term recovery protocol set to be followed.
As he is unlikely to have an operation to solve the issue, the timeframe of his recovery is difficult to predict.
The Gunners have friendly games arranged in August against Girona, Real Betis, Borussia Dortmund and Como before the season kicks off with a Community Shield clash with Manchester City on 16th August.
He is unlikely to feature in many of those friendly games. However, he may not have featured in those games anyway, as France reached the semi-finals of the World Cup, and it wouldn’t have left him much recovery time.
If, as expected, Saliba misses some of the opening games of the season, the north London outfit have a plethora of potential replacements, which will allow him the time he needs to recover from the long-term issue.