More Injury Woe For Arsenal

Premier League leaders Arsenal have lost another two players to injury at a crucial time of the season.

Abou Diaby injured his calf in Tuesday's 2-0 Champions League victory in Milan and will miss this weekend's trip to Wigan. The Frenchman, who only recently returned from a long injury picked up on international duty, is not expected to be out for too long.

Theo Walcott has also picked up a thigh injury while playing in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Colorado Rapids. The England youngster, who has been growing in stature in recent games, will also miss the Wigan match, although his recovery should also not take too long.

"From Tuesday night we lost Abou Diaby," Arsene Wenger told Arsenal TV Online. "He has got a problem on his calf. Today we also lost Theo Walcott. He played against Colorado Rapids and he got a little thigh problem."

Robin van Persie also featured in the game against the Rapids, playing 60 minutes and coming through unscathed. The injury-prone striker is not expected to start against Wigan, although he is likely to make an appearance from the bench.

African duo Kolo Toure and Alex Song could also feature against Wigan, although it appears unlikely following Wenger's comments on ATVO.

The Arsenal boss said: "Robin played an hour and he looks OK. But it looks early for him – he finished the game very tired today so I will have to analyse that. We have a little chance to get Kolo back in the squad and a little, little chance to get Song back."

In other news, Tomas Rosicky is still more than a week away from a recovery. The Czech Republic star is expected to return in 10 or 12 days. Wenger will be hoping that the 27-year-old will be available in time for the Gunners game against Chelsea on March 23.