Ben Dinnery

Tue 26 July 2022 12:22, UK

Arsenal may consider signing a stand-in right-back to lighten the load on Takehiro Tomiyasu as he attempts to break his injury cycle.

That is the view of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis.

Tomiyasu, 23, endured a stop-start first season at Arsenal in 2021-22 as muscular injuries impacted his playing time.

The Japanese defender has not yet featured for the Gunners in pre-season ahead of 2022-23, with their opening Premier League match against Crystal Palace next Friday (5 August) fast approaching.

As quoted by the Evening Standard on Monday (25 July), Mikel Arteta revealed that Tomiyasu is now “close” to a return to team training.

But Dinnery suggests that the Londoners could look to bring in a new right-back to ease the pressure on Tomiyasu while he regains match fitness in the coming weeks and months.

“He came into Arsenal and never had the opportunity to adapt to life in England,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.

“The Premier League represents its own set of unique challenges in terms of its intensity and the style of play that Mikel Arteta wanted from him.

“He came in and did a fantastic. But ultimately, the number of minutes he was playing impacted him. The calf and muscle problems really ruined the second half of the season.

“He was keen to be involved against Liverpool in the League Cup and they took a chance that didn’t work out. That has had a knock-on effect.

“Pre-season is an ideal chance to break that cycle, but unfortunately he has been on the sidelines again. Sometimes you just have to work your way through it.

“But let’s not forget he is still relatively young and hasn’t been at the club very young. In terms of recruitment, Arteta will probably want to manage his load better than they did in that first season. Recruitment is an ideal way to do that.”

In other news, pundit expects Nicolas Pepe and two other Arsenal stars to exit after Sky reveal.