Danny Welbeck Arsenal Sporting Europa

Welbeck undergoes second surgery but prognosis remains unknown

Danny Welbeck has undergone a second "planned" surgery on his broken right ankle, however a timeline regarding his return for Arsenal remains uncertain.

The 27-year-old suffered the injury in the Europa League draw with Sporting CP, and went under the knife on Friday.

Manager Unai Emery confirmed after the 1-1 Premier League stalemate with Wolves that Welbeck had indeed suffered a break.

Article continues below

Arsenal have now confirmed that the England forward has had a second procedure and that his rehabilitation will start immediately.

"Both procedures went well, without complications," a statement from the Gunners read. "Danny will now recuperate and start his rehabilitation. It’s too early to say how long this will take."

Welbeck's immediate future at Arsenal also needs resolving with his contract at The Emirates Stadium due to expire in the summer of 2019.

Prior to his season being halted, Welbeck had impressed under Emery's stewardship scoring five goals in 14 appearances during the 2018-19 campaign.

In an effort to ensure that the forward remains part of the group despite his upcoming spell on the sidelines, the club included him in a team meeting before the visit of Wolves on Sunday.

“We talked to him because the coach [suggested it] before the game in the meeting, we had a FaceTime session with him,” goalkeeper Bernd Leno said. 

“It was very good.

“He looked very happy and I think he was happy to talk to us because he is still a big part of our team and we will support him to have a good time when he is injured.

“We all are sorry for him for his injury, and hope he will have a good recovery and to see him on the pitch because he's an important player for the team and also in the dressing room.

“I think that [togetherness in the squad] is a big quality of the manager because he always wants to have a team - not just one player, one player, one player. 

"I think this meeting was very motivating for us and for every player to play for Danny because everybody likes him.”

Advertisement