Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitted his regret over the loan signing of the Swede Kim Kallstrom from Spartak Moscow on Sunday, as he revealed that he knew about his back injury before the transfer went through but said he had no alternative but to complete the deal on deadline day as there was no time to sign anyone else.
The experienced midfielder will be out for at least a month, possibly six weeks, scuppering plans of him covering for the Welshman Aaron Ramsey, who is also expected to miss six weeks with a thigh injury.
This means that they will both miss the Gunners' next fortnight of crucial fixtures, in which they face Liverpool twice, Manchester United and Bayern Munich.
Wenger said that Kallstrom will be out until late February "at the earliest" or mid-March "at the latest", so here are the matches the 31-year-old could miss.
If Kallstrom is out until late February 'at the earliest'
8 February: Liverpool (away), Premier League
12 February: Manchester United (home), Premier League
15-16 February: Liverpool (home), FA Cup
19 February: Bayern Munich (home), Champions League
22 February: Sunderland (home), Premier League
1 March: Stoke City (away), Premier League
8 March: Swansea City (home), Premier League
...and if he is out until mid-March 'at the latest'
8 March: Swansea City (home), Premier League
11 March: Bayern Munich (away), Champions League
16 March: Tottenham Hotspur (away), Premier League
At the time of his unveiling on Friday, Kallstrom cryptically said: "I am so pleased to come here to learn as much as possible. I’m here to do my best for Arsenal and to help out the team, so we can achieve good results for the last part of the season."
So was he just talking about the "last part of the season" all along, not the second half which we thought at the time. If Arsenal reach all their remaining finals this season, and his returns mid-March, Kallstrom can play in a total of 15 matches for the club this season, and only eight in the Premier League, meaning that he will not get a winner's medal, should the Gunners win the title for the first time in 10 years.
The games that Kallstrom could actually appear in
22 March Chelsea (away) Premier League
29 March Manchester City (home) Premier League
1 April Possible Champions League quarter-final first-leg
5 April Everton (away) Premier League
8 April Possible Champions League quarter-final second-leg
12 April West Ham (home) Premier League (subject to change for FA Cup)
12/13 April Possible FA Cup semi-final
19 April Hull City (away) Premier League
22 April Possible Champions League semi-final first-leg
26 April Newcastle United (home) Premier League
29 April Possible Champions League semi-final second-leg
3 May West Brom (home) Prermier League
11 May Norwich City (away) Premier League
16 May Possible FA Cup semi-final
24 May Possible Champions League final
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