Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has suffered another knee injury that rules him out of the England squad for Euro 2016. Arsène Wenger confirmed the 22-year-old had “no chance” of being fit for the tournament having suffered a new problem that will sideline him for six to eight weeks.
“I only was informed yesterday,” said the Arsenal manager. “I had a conversation with Alex and our medical team told me he will be back at the beginning of July. He was out for a while and in a way he was not overloaded with games. A guy of 22 you want him to go to the European Championship. It’s very sad. England have quite a few problems up front so I think it’s bad.”
Oxlade-Chamberlain extended a medial knee ligament when the winger slid to collect a pass in training, Wenger said. The manager denied the player was injury prone. “We don’t see any weakness,” he said. The setback would not change his view on offering Oxlade-Chamberlain a new contract. “We have invested a lot of time and we will not give up now,” Wenger said.
Rafael Benítez has advised Roy Hodgson to recall Andros Townsend to England duty. “Andros is doing so well he can be in the squad without any problem,” Newcastle’s manager said.
With the Euros in mind, Wenger has still to decide how much action to give to Jack Wilshere and Santi Cazorla, who are both fit again after long-term injuries. The Spanish midfielder appeared for Arsenal’s Under-21s on Tuesday.
Wenger is aiming for a win at Manchester City on Sunday to try to clinch an automatic Champions League spot. Three points would guarantee a top-three finish. While he has regrets there are not even greater prizes at stake at the Etihad this weekend, he stressed there are heavyweight implications.
“It is still an important game,” he said. “Part of the responsibility of being professional is preparing the future and the future of Arsenal football club depends on this game. It is that big.”
Wenger has some sympathy for Manuel Pellegrini, whose position at the club was weakened over the second half of the season by the announcement that Pep Guardiola would be replacing him.
“I believe he has shown great dignity and great human qualities during his time here and I believe he is respected by everybody in the Premier League. Certainly by myself.”
Arsenal are three points ahead of City with an inferior goal difference and two games left to play. Wenger sent his compliments to the champions, Leicester.
“Congratulations to Claudio Ranieri and all the players,” he said. “It’s a remarkable achievement. Their success is based on team spirit. If you look at their results they lost only three games and that’s remarkable looking at the quality of their competitors. It has also been done in an unusual way which gives us food for thought.”