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Arsenal are anxiously awaiting updates after what could turn into a double injury setback, with both Declan Rice and Cristhian Mosquera forced off during their Premier League trip to Aston Villa.

Mosquera went down clutching his thigh in the 78th minute, leading to Ezri Konsa making his debut on his return to Villa, where he had spent seven years before moving to Arsenal this summer in a £51 million deal.

That will be a concern for the Gunners, who have already had poor fortune with centre-back injuries this season.

William Saliba is not expected back until at least October after suffering a back injury in France’s World Cup semi-final loss to Spain, a blow that had prompted Arsenal to bring in a new defender in Konsa in the first place.

Mosquera was able to walk off without assistance, but any muscular issue would still be likely to keep him out for at least a couple of weeks.

Cristhian Mosquera was replaced by Ezri Konsa in the second half.

But only six minutes after the Spaniard went off, Arsenal were dealt an even more troubling moment as Rice limped off and was replaced by Martin Zubimendi.

It is not yet clear what issue Rice was dealing with, or whether the injury was the reason behind his substitution, but after a summer affected by fitness problems, there will naturally be concern around the England international.

After an extremely demanding 2025/26 campaign, in which he played 55 matches for Arsenal and started 49 of them, Rice suffered neural pain in his lower back and hamstring during the World Cup, with the effects of the season clearly catching up with him.

Mikel Arteta will hope that the discomfort Rice felt against Villa was simply the result of a knock rather than a recurrence of an earlier problem.

The Arsenal manager is expected to respond to those concerns after the match, which Arsenal won 1-0 thanks to Bukayo Saka’s 59th-minute winner.