Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has said it is "far from ideal" that Piero Hincapie and Martin Zubimendi were injured during a post-match training session following the Gunners' 2-1 Premier League win over Leeds.
A session was held after Saturday's match at Emirates Stadium for players who either did not feature or did not play the full 90 minutes. Ecuador defender Hincapie, 24, was carried off by goalkeeper Illan Meslier during the session, while Spain midfielder Zubimendi, 27, was also hurt. Hincapie had come on after 82 minutes as Arsenal saw out the victory, while Zubimendi was an unused substitute.
"We had a training session planned after the match for everyone that didn't get enough minutes, and in two unfortunate actions we lost two players," Arteta said at a news conference before Tuesday's Champions League match against Lille. "They'll have further scans to see where they are and we'll have that time frame for how long they are going to be out for."
Asked what could have been done to prevent the injuries, Arteta joked that the pair should not have trained. "Never train and they don't get injured. The consequence of that is when you ask them to play they have no rhythm and no impact in the game," the Spaniard added. He said such an incident had not happened in the seven years he has been at the club, and that he could not predict such events: "If I had a crystal ball I would just say 'guys, get in the jacuzzi and I will see you tomorrow'."
Hincapie has made three Premier League appearances off the bench this season but started Arsenal's Champions League win over Napoli last month. Zubimendi has largely featured as a substitute, making five Premier League appearances from the bench.
Source: BBC Sport Football · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing