Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna will have to miss Sunday’s Premier League derby against Tottenham after failing to recover on time of a knee ligament injury.
The French international faced a clock-race during the whole week in hopes of being fit for the clash, as he was assigned the challenging task of stopping the man of the moment in Villas-Boas side, left winger Gareth Bale.
Arsene Wenger made official the right-back’s absence: ““He’s not ready for Sunday. It is too soon.”
With Sagna out and Gibbs, as expected, ruled out due to a thigh injury, Nacho Monreal will cover the left flank and Carl Jenkinson will be in charge of marking the Spurs ace, who arrives to the derby with an impressive run of eight goals in the last six games.
But Wenger’s line up headaches go beyond the back-four, as centre midfielder Abou Diaby will remain doubtful until the last minute.
Struggling with a calf injury in the last few days, Diaby has expressed his motivation towards the derby and expects to be back for the kick off: “We all look forward to these big games because they are not only important to us, but to the club and the fans. It is more than a game,” he declared.
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