Robin Van Persie Injury Update

After Cristiano Ronaldo injury disaster, now it's Robin van Persie's turn to be sidelined for another 2 to 3 weeks to come.

The Arsenal and Netherlands striker twisted his ankle during the premier league match against Blackburn on Saturday (28/8), 35 minutes after he played. Therefore, he won't be able to take a part for Arsenal's Championship League opener against Braga on Sept 15th, as well as European Championship qualifiers against San Marino and Finland in September. Netherlands called up for Ruud van Nistelrooy to replace him, for the first time in 2 years.

At first, it seems to be a short-term injury, since it was just a twisted ankle. Even after the match, the Arsenal coach said, "It is a twisted ankle.We will have to check but, if we have no bad news, we hope that in eight to ten days he can be okay."

21 January 2007 - A Celebration Coach Might Not Be A Bad Idea

On 21 January 2007, Arsenal staged a dramatic comeback win against Manchester United at the Emirates, but the Gunners paid a steep price for the three points (and in ridiculous fashion).

United entered the match at the top of table, 15 points clear of fourth-place Arsenal, and were looking to avenge their 0-1 loss to the Gunners from September. United had their chances in the first half, but were repeatedly denied by Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann. They took a deserved lead in the second half, however, when forward Wayne Rooney scored with an unmarked header in the 59th minute.

The Gunners continued to attack and received an 83rd-minute equalizer from striker Robin van Persie, who had come on in the 67th minute. Ten minutes later, with United visibly tired and frustrated, Thierry Henry headed in the gamewinner.

Arsenal's joy at the win was dampened when it was later revealed that van Persie broke a bone in his foot while celebrating his goal. The season-ending injury was a crushing blow, as the Dutchman was the Gunners' leading scorer at the time. Arsenal won only 8 of their next 23 matches in all competitions and finished the season without any silverware.

13 September 2006 - Footballers Of The World, Unite!

On 13 September 2006, Arsenal defeated Hamburg 1-2 in their opening UEFA Champions League group stage match before a crowd of 51,258 at Arena Hamburg. The match was notable for the fact that, for a 42-minute period, the Arsenal side was comprised of 11 different nationalities.

Arsenal's starting eleven included ten different nationalities. The only duplicate was the Ivory Coast, due to the presence of Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboué in defense. Toure suffered a thigh injury, however, and was replaced by Justin Hoyte in the 28th minute. At that point, the Gunners on the pitch were Jens Lehmann (Germany), Emmanuel Eboué (Ivory Coast), Johann Djourou (Switzerland), Justin Hoyte (England), William Gallas (France), Tomáš Rosický (Czech Republic), Gilberto Silva (Brazil), Cesc Fàbregas (Spain), Alexander Hleb (Belarus), Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo), and Robin van Persie (Netherlands). That combination lasted until the 69th minute, when van Persie was substituted in favor of a second Brazilian, striker Julio Baptista.

The match itself was never in doubt, as Hamburg keeper Sascha Kirschstein was sent off in the 10th minute for tripping van Persie. Gilberto converted the ensuing spot kick and Rosický added a second goal in the 53rd minute. Hamburg's Boubacar Sanogo pulled one back in the 90th minute, but it was too late for the undermanned side to complete a comeback and the match ended 1-2 in Arsenal's favor.

As if eleven nationalities weren't enough, Arsenal had two more nations represented on the bench with Sweden's Freddie Ljungberg and Cameroon's Alex Song.