Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain ruled out of Euro 2016 after Arsenal midfielder suffered injury setback

Oxlade-Chamberlain will be out for 'six to eight weeks', ending his hopes of playing at Euro 2016 next month

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has been ruled out for up to two months, ending his hopes of being included in Roy Hodgson’s England squad for the 2016 European Championships.

Oxlade-Chamberlain has only just returned to full training after a two-month absence, but Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger confirmed on Friday morning that the midfielder will miss “six to eight weeks” after suffering a setback.

Arsenal need one victory from their final two matches to confirm their place in the top four for a 20th consecutive season, and they face rivals Manchester City on Sunday in a match that could have a major say in who qualifies for the Champions League next season. Oxlade-Chamberlain was expected to make his comeback in the match, albeit from the substitutes’ bench, but Wenger has confirmed his season is over.

“We lost Oxlade-Chamberlain, and he will be out for six to eight weeks I think,” Wenger said at his pre-match press conference.

“There is no chance of the Euros for him. He will be back at the beginning of July.”

To make matters worse for Arsenal, they will also be without defender Per Mertesacker for the matches against City and Aston Villa, with the German centre-back ruled out after picking up a hamstring injury in last weekend’s 1-0 win over Norwich.

For Oxlade-Chamberlain, his injury setback is reminiscent of his 2014 injury troubles that blighted his run-up to the 2014 World Cup. Oxlade-Chamberlain missed the final month of the Premier League season, though he was selected in Hodgson’s squad after playing an hour in a World Cup warm-up against Ecuador though he failed to make a single appearance in Brazil.

There was a positive update on the fitness of Santi Cazorla though after Wenger confirmed the midfielder “came through it well” in regards to his appearance in Tuesday night’s Under-21s match against Blackburn Rovers. Cazorla was an unused substitute for the win over Norwich, and Wenger admitted he could feature against City this weekend.


 Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta could join Manchester City as a coach (Getty)
 (Getty Images)

Wenger touched on the subject of club captain Mikel Arteta’s future and admitted that a move to City to join Pep Guardiola’s coaching staff is a possibility, although he did not close the door on Arteta or any other players learning their trade off the pitch at Arsenal.

“It’s possible,” Wenger said. “He is able to inform you much better than I.

“The door is always open for players to get their coaching licences [at Arsenal].”

Arteta is out of contract at the end of the season along with Mathieu Flamini and Tomas Rosicky, with all three set to leave the club after they were not offered extensions.