Monreal to miss start of the season

Arsenal will be without Spanish left-back Nacho Monreal for the start of the 2013/14 season as he has suffered a back injury. Monreal, who joined the club from Malaga in January, was on international duty with Spain at the Confederations Cup this summer, was given an extended summer break, but has suffered an injury that could leave Arsenal short at the left-back position.

Andre Santos completed his move to Flamengo earlier in the week and Thomas Vermaelen, who can play the position, is out for 3 months with a back problem, so only the injury-prone Kieran Gibbs is available for the first-team in the left-back role. If Gibbs was to go down injured, Ignasi Miquel has played the left-back role competently, so that is another possibility of course.

Arsenal are potentially short in the position though, I wonder whether Wenger will try and add a versatile defender who is capable of playing both at CB and LB. Because Arsenal do need another central defender, signing one who can play both CB and LB wouldn’t be a bad idea. We’ve had players in the past such as William Gallas that could play both in the centre and on the left and as mentioned we currently have Vermaelen and Miquel in the first-team that can do that too.

Nacho Monreal will miss the start of the new season with a back injury. Picture: ESPN