Evening Standard
· collected 2026-10-02 · by Tashan Deniran-Alleyne and George Flood
Arsenal's injury situation is worsening ahead of their upcoming match against Leeds. Christos Tzolis, signed for £34 million this summer, suffered a suspected hamstring issue while playing for Greece and is now uncertain to return before further assessment. Martin Odegaard, Arsenal’s captain, was involved in a controversial incident but played 90 minutes against Wales, potentially returning on October 10th when they face Leeds. Ezri Konsa, who had been training individually due to unspecified injuries, traveled with England and could also be available for the match against Leeds. Declan Rice is among players forced to withdraw from international duty due to injury concerns, and his return date remains unknown.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-02,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Due to a change to the length of the first international break this season, three weeks will have passed from the 3-0 loss to Brighton when Arsenal host Leeds at the Emirates Stadium in a lunchtime kick-off.
asserted
Arsenal → pass → off
The Gunners will hope to have Cristhian Mosquera and Ben White available for selection, but their injury issues remain with Declan Rice and Kai Havertz among those being forced to withdraw from international duty.
asserted
issues → hope → duty
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard received a knock on Sunday and summer signing Ezri Konsa was an unused substitute in England’s 2-0 win over the Czech Republic, before Christos Tzolis was then forced off playing for Greece against the Netherlands.
asserted
Tzolis → receive → Netherlands
Arsenal’s newest injury fear concerns Tzolis, who suffered a suspected hamstring issue shortly after having a goal ruled out for offside during the early stages of Greece’s eventful 2-2 Nations League draw with the Netherlands in Thessaloniki on Thursday night.
asserted
goal → concern → night
It was a huge concern to see the £34million summer signing from Club Brugge receiving treatment with his shirt over his face, though footage of him jogging off after only 18 minutes appeared to allay at least some worries over the severity of the issue, with Greece boss Ivan Jovanovic claiming that he initially refused to be substituted.
asserted
he → see → issue
Potential return date: Unknown, pending further assessment
Martin Odegaard
The Arsenal captain said the challenge - which came from behind after he had already played the ball away - “doesn’t belong on a football field” as he angrily confronted Silva and was seen shouting “f**k you” repeatedly in his direction.
Odegaard limped away after the game, though he did not withdraw from the Norway squad for Thursday’s clash with Wales, which he started and played the full 90 minutes, delivering a wonderful early assist for Oscar Bobb’s goal in a surprise 2-1 loss in Cardiff.
asserted
he → pende → Cardiff
Potential return date: October 10 vs Leeds (h)
Ezri Konsa
Konsa started and played the full 90 minutes in England’s dramatic 3-2 Nations League defeat by Spain at Wembley last Saturday.
asserted
Konsa → start → Wembley
Read More
However, the Football Association (FA) confirmed on Monday morning that the defender - along with Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly - was not training with the main squad ahead of the flight to Prague, where Thomas Tuchel’s side faced the Czech Republic on Tuesday evening.
asserted
side → read → evening
Instead, Konsa followed his own individual programme at Tottenham’s training ground in Enfield.
asserted
Konsa → follow → Enfield
The encouraging sign is that Konsa was on the bench in Prague and has made the trip to Croatia for this weekend’s showdown.
asserted
Konsa → make → showdown
O’Reilly, however, has withdrawn.
asserted
O’Reilly → withdraw → ?
Potential return date: October 10 vs Leeds (h)
Kai Havertz
The forward left the pitch with a hamstring issue after being caught by a high challenge from Quinten Timber - brother of his Arsenal team-mate Jurrien - in the first half.
asserted
forward → leave → half
Rice has struggled with niggling injuries over the past 12 months, including neural and nerve pain in his hamstring.
asserted
Rice → struggle → hamstring
It’s not believed that the midfielder is currently carrying an injury, rather he is being given some rest at Arsenal in preparation for some huge games coming up.
asserted
he → believe → games
Potential return date: October 10 vs Leeds (h)
Piero Hincapie
Hincapie was left out of Ecuador’s squad for the current international window amid ongoing fitness concerns.
asserted
Hincapie → leave → concerns
The left-sided defender has only started once for Arsenal across all competitions this season and missed out completely against Ipswich in the Carabao Cup.
asserted
defender → start → Cup
Having returned to the matchday squad for the loss to Brighton, it was assumed everything was fine, but new Ecuador manager Marcelo Gallardo confirmed Hincapie was left out of his first squad because of injury.
asserted
Hincapie → return → injury
It is unclear as to how serious the issue is, though a three-week break quite possibly came at the ideal time for Hincapie.
uncertain
break → come → Hincapie
Potential return date: October 10 vs Leeds (h)
Ben White
White picked up a groin issue in Arsenal's 2-0 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on September 12, subsequently missing the Carabao Cup win over Ipswich three days later.
asserted
White → pick → Ipswich
The defender, not named in the England squad, was thought be in contention for the showdown against Brighton following comments from Arteta during his pre-match press conference.
asserted
defender → name → conference
“Ben is all good, we have another training session this afternoon, so very positive about everybody,” Arteta said.
asserted
Arteta → have → everybody
However, White was not in the matchday squad against his former club, meaning Rice and Martin Zubimendi had to share right-back duties after Timber went off in the second half.
asserted
Timber → mean → half
Though, taking Arteta's pre-Brighton update into consideration, White should be fine after the international break.
asserted
White → take → break
Potential return date: October 10 vs Leeds (h)
Cristhian Mosquera
Mosquera has been out of action since he was forced off in the 1-0 win over Aston Villa on August 31, and has now missed Arsenal's last five matches across all competitions, including the loss to Brighton.
Spotted in his tracksuit, Mosquera then watched the warm-ups from the touchline, as the extra man often does for the Gunners.
asserted
man → force → Gunners
The extended international break should give Mosquera a chance to fully recover from the muscle issue.
asserted
break → give → issue
The good news is the defender doesn't need surgery, but it may be after the November international break before he is back in action.
uncertain
he → need → action
“Extensive assessments have concluded that surgery is not recommended, but William should now commence a managed recovery programme.
asserted
William → conclude → programme
“William’s rehabilitation will commence immediately, with continual management of his injury, and he is expected to be out of action for an extended period.”
asserted
he → commence → period
The Aporia
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
.jpeg?width=1200&auto=webp&quality=75)
