Leeds United and Javi Gracia have been left rocked after three of their stars are set to miss the trip to table-toppers Arsenal as the Premier League season gets back underway following the international break.
The Yorkshire side lifted themselves out of the relegation zone and all the way up to 14th with a win just before the break, beating fellow relegation candidates Wolves 4-2 in an end-to-end affair.
But they still sit just two points clear of the drop zone, and travel to Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal for their next tie, who won the reverse fixture at Elland Road 1-0 in October.
And they will have to make the trip without arguably their three most important players, with Max Wober, Tyler Adams and Wilfried Gnonto all set to be absent from the clash.
Adams, the Leeds United captain, was forced to pull out of international duty with a hamstring injury that he picked up in a training session before their win over Wolves, and a complication has left him needing to undergo surgery, which the Athletic report will ‘rule him out of a longer stretch of the Premier League run-in’.
Worse yet, star attacker Wilfried Gnonto picked up what appeared to be an ankle injury during Italy’s clash with Malta on Sunday, limping off after just 22 minutes and Saturday afternoon may come too soon for the teenager.
Meanwhile, January addition and new defensive stalwart Maximilian Wober pulled his hamstring while on duty with Austria, forcing him to return to Elland Road.
According to reports, ‘Leeds appear optimistic that both will be fit to feature in most of the Premier League run-in’, but admit that both are ‘doubtful’ for the trip to north London.
Arsenal have injury issues of their own, with Thomas Partey flying back to England early to have scans on his leg after feeling something, while former Leeds loanee Eddie Nketiah remains sidelined with a foot injury.
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