The one downside coming out of Mikel Arteta's press conference ahead of Arsenal's FA Cup fourth round tie against Manchester City was the Mohamed Elneny injury update.
Having been a somewhat surprising omission from the Gunners' matchday squad for the 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the North London Derby - just six days after scoring against Oxford United in the previous round of the aforementioned competition - it has since been revealed that the midfielder has a knee problem.
Despite joining in with the on-pitch post-match celebrations after Arsenal's win over Manchester United last weekend, Elneny hadn't recovered in time to be available for selection and that looks set to be the case once again when the squad arrive at the Etihad Stadium on Friday evening.
READ MORE: Every word Mikel Arteta said on Kiwior transfer, Elneny injury and need for midfield cover
"I don't think he will be," Arteta told football.london in response to being asked if Elneny was in contention to be involved against Man City. "He had some issues with his knee that we are assessing at the moment and we will have to see how he evolves in the next couple of days."
What was even more of a blow was the Spaniard not being able to deny - or confirm for that matter - concerns that the Egypt international could miss the remainder of the season: "There are concerns, especially [because] Mo is a player who never complains about anything," Arteta added. But let’s see."
Whilst Elneny is by no means a regular under Arteta, he has proven to be a decent backup option for Thomas Partey at the base of Arsenal's midfield over the past six to eight months. In fact, it was his performances towards the end of last season that earned him a one-year contract extension.
As a result, if the injury turns out to be worse than initially feared then the Gunners manager will be faced with an all-too-familiar scenario; ensuring he has cover for Partey. One option, of course, is dipping into the transfer market before next Tuesday's deadline and Arteta himself has publicly stated that in an ideal world, he will be able to sign a midfielder.
"Well, we need some more cover in midfield ideally if we can," he added. "In this market, it's pretty complicated to do that. The most important thing is that we get the performances and the time on the pitch that we need with the players we have available today that are already really good."
But should deadline day come and go without one of Amadou Onana or Moises Caicedo among other midfielders being linked with a move to north London completing a transfer then Arteta will have to look to internal solutions to ensure Elneny's potential lengthy absence doesn't derail the season.
New signing Jakub Kiwior has previously operated as a defensive midfielder, and Arteta's comments in the press conference don't exactly rule out the prospect of him using the Poland international in the same role: "Well he gives us more cover," the Arsenal manager said.
"We’ve been with three centre backs which is very short. We've been very lucky with injuries and we needed to recruit. We've done it. Jakub can play in different roles and is a versatile player and he'll strengthen the team. If there's anything else available that can make us better we'll look at it."
Although, if the plan is to use Kiwior exclusively at centre-back then the most obvious Elneny alternative to provide cover for Partey is Albert Sambi Lokonga. This was the case earlier in the season when the experienced midfielder missed two months of action with a hamstring injury.
However, the 23-year-old - signed for £17million a couple of summers ago - has struggled for form and by Arteta's own admission is better equipped to play as one of the more advanced midfielders instead of operating as a number six: "It’s true that we played him more there in pre-season, the Spaniard said after the 1-0 win over FC Zurich back in November.
"When we signed him, we had another idea - but in pre-season, he developed and played well in that position. Having to rest Thomas today, I think it was a good option."
Hopefully, Elneny's injury isn't too serious and is available for selection soon. But in the event that he is facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines and Arsenal don't manage to sign a replacement before the January transfer window closes then all signs point towards Arteta revisiting the Lokonga experiment as cover for Partey.
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