November 2nd 2023.
Emile Smith Rowe was looking forward to his first start of the season as Arsenal took on Sheffield United on Saturday, and the England Under-21 international put in a great performance, helping the Gunners cruise to a 5-0 win. However, Smith Rowe was ruled out of the midweek clash at West Ham United due to a worrying knee injury.
Mikel Arteta confirmed the news before the game, and the 23-year-old did not make the short trip over to east London. Arteta also shared a further update on the midfielder in his post-match press conference, stating that Smith Rowe would be out for a few weeks.
Despite the loss, Arteta was pleased with the effort from his side, making six changes from the weekend, with Declan Rice, William Saliba, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard among those on the bench. He said, "We wanted to compete in a very different way, the way we discussed for 48 hours, in a very different way to what we’ve done."
The Arsenal manager also warned his players against becoming too arrogant, saying, "Every time you lose a game the pain is there. We have to use this pain for Saturday that’s for sure.”
Smith Rowe had only made three league appearances prior to his first start on Saturday, racking up a combined 32 minutes having been an unused substitute in his side’s six other games. He had also missed the first-half of last season after undergoing groin surgery, settling for a bench role after his return as Arsenal pushed for the Premier League title.
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