Huge blow for Arsenal! Lionesses captain Leah Williamson ruled out of Gunners' must-win Champions League qualifier against Hacken

The Gunners lost the first leg of their second round Champions League qualifying tie against Hacken last week, suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat after hitting the woodwork twice. It means they need to beat the Swedish side by at least two goals on Thursday if they are to reach the group stage.

While Arsenal do have the boost of hosting the second leg, they have also been dealt a blow by the absence of a key player in Williamson. The defender was placed in concussion protocol ahead of Sunday's huge Women's Super League clash with Manchester City and will not come out of it in time to play her part in this big European fixture.

That was confirmed by Arsenal head coach Jonas Eidevall in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday. When asked if there was a timeframe on Williamson's status, he said: "It is guided by our medical team and when I have something more concrete to communicate, I will do that."

Eidevall added: "One of the great things with the team that we have is that we have a lot of big game players. We have so many experiences and qualities. Leah is a fantastic player and will be missed by any team she doesn't play for but the strength of our squad... We have got Lotte [Wubben-Moy] and [Laia Codina] playing phenomenally well together [at centre-back]. I think that's a real strength of the squad and we have enough quality and enough experience."

As well as Victoria Pelova, who suffered an ACL injury in the summer, Arsenal will also remain without full-back Steph Catley and forward Lina Hurtig for Thursday's fixture, despite the latter being more involved in training this week.

Arsenal will hope to come through the second leg against Hacken without Williamson and then look forward to welcoming her back once she has successfully recovered from her concussion. The Gunners visit Leicester in the WSL on Sunday.