Arsenal’s White out for months after knee surgery

Arsenal defender Ben White will be sidelined for “months” following knee surgery, manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed.

The 27-year-old has been dealing with several injuries, and during the international break, it was decided that he would undergo an operation to address the issue.

“It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately,” said Arteta, whose side host Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

“We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.

“He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months.”

Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: “We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don’t expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly.”

Arsenal expect to have Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka available for Saturday’s game after both players recovered from injuries sustained during the draw at Chelsea, which led to their withdrawal from the England squad.

Defender Riccardo Calafiori is also in line to feature, having returned to fitness after a month-long absence due to a knee issue. However, Takehiro Tomiyasu remains sidelined.