Everton have offered further details on the hamstring injury sustained by Mikel Arteta in last night’s 1-1 draw with Birmingham. The Club have announced that, following scans, the Spaniard appears to have suffered a grade two tear.
That indicates that Arteta may have suffered damage a number of the muscles in the area where “the fibres have been pulled apart but they haven’t completely ruptured.”
Although Everton have stated that “It is not yet known how long the Spanish midfielder will be out for”, sources suggest that such an injury normally carries an absence of 2-6 weeks, others claim 4-6 weeks. At this stage, the safe bet would be to assume that Arteta seems likely to face around a month on the sidelines. That would see Arteta miss league fixtures against Fulham, Aston Villa and Wolves, with a possible return against Blackburn on April 16 – gameweek 33.
Over 100,000 managers in the Fantasy Premier League game have transferred in the midfielder over the past two gameweeks, with Arteta’s price rising from 8.0 to 8.3 as a result.
Arteta’s absence from the Everton lineup will come as a major blow for David Moyes. In Fantasy terms, it could now bring Seamus Coleman back into his starting lineup having started on the bench in the previous two matches, while Leighton Baines will be expected to assume full set-piece duties and possibly spot-kick responsibilities. Everton are yet to win a penalty in the league this season.
