Arsenal vs Chelsea: Fears grow over Aaron Ramsey injury as midfielder's recovery stalls

Ramsey has not played since the opening weekend of the season and is yet to return to full training

Jack de Menezes
Thursday 22 September 2016 05:39 EDT
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Aaron Ramsey is not recovering from his hamstring injury as quickly as Arsenal expected
Aaron Ramsey is not recovering from his hamstring injury as quickly as Arsenal expected (Getty)

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Arsenal are growing increasingly concerned about the fitness of Aaron Ramsey after the midfielder was ruled out of this weekend’s Premier League visit of Chelsea to the Emirates Stadium as his hamstring injury continues to keep him sidelined.

25-year-old Ramsey has not played since the opening weekend of the season, having limped off the pitch during the 4-3 defeat by Liverpool after he was rushed back by Arsene Wenger despite featuring in the Euro 2016 semi-finals. As a result, Wenger is reluctant to include him in his squad until he is convinced the Wales international is 100 per cent fit.

But according to The Sun, Arsenal are concerned with the latest injury setback given Ramsey’s fitness problems in the past. It’s claimed that Wenger fears throwing him back into the mix too soon will result in another long-term absence, with the midfielder suffering four separate hamstring injuries between the end of September 2014 and October 2015.

Ramsey will miss this weekend’s clash with London rivals Chelsea after Wenger admitted earlier in the week that the matches is too soon for him to feature and despite returning to light training earlier in the month, he is yet to step up his recovery.

Wenger has other injury concerns to worry about, with Olivier Giroud missing their last two matches with a toe injury. The Frenchman was left out of the squad that beat Hull 4-1 last weekend as Alexis Sanchez continued to play as the lone striker – bagging himself two goals in the process – and he was not risked for the midweek EFL Cup win at Nottingham Forest.

He has not been seen since he was sent-off in the dying seconds of the 1-1 draw against Paris Saint-Germain last week, and is yet to start a match this season after Wenger gave him extra time off at the start of the season following Euro 2016 before easing him back into the first-team via the substitutes’ bench.

Ramsey has completed light training this month but is yet to return to full contact
Ramsey has completed light training this month but is yet to return to full contact (Getty)

He could return to the squad to face Chelsea if he passes a late fitness test on Friday, although he is highly unlikely to be thrown straight back into the starting line-up if he comes through unscathed.

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