Arsenal defender Ben White has undergone a “minor knee procedure”, according to the Evening Standard.

The fullback has effectively been playing while injured in recent weeks and the decision has been made for the player to have surgery during the international break.

White has already missed four matches against Bolton Wanderers, Leicester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Southampton due to the injury.

However, the 26-year-old did start 5 of the last 7 fixtures in order to help his team prior to his surgery.

White could miss up to 12 matches

While having the operation at the start of the November international break will reduce the amount of club fixtures he will be sidelined for, it looks like he could still be unavailable for a significant number of games.

Initial reports suggest that White will be on the treatment table for 6 to 10 weeks, meaning he will be ruled out for the busy festive period.

During his absence, the defender could miss 9 league fixtures, including Nottingham Forest, West Ham, Manchester United, Fulham, Everton, Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town, Brentford and Brighton.

White could also be out for two Champions League matches (versus Sporting Lisbon and Monaco) as well as the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Palace.

An Arsenal player returning from injury could help make up for the loss

Riccardo Calafiori is scheduled to return from his own knee injury pretty soon. Speaking at the end of October, manager Mikel Arteta estimated that the Italian international would be out of contention for “a few weeks”.

That would suggest the 22-year-old could make his comeback in time for the Forest fixture. With White and Takehiro Tomiyasu both unavailable, it would suggest that Jurrien Timber will switch to the right-hand side, with Calafiori on the left. Even so, the situation is far from ideal.

Find out who is in Arsenal’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here