Ben White’s withdrawal against Shakhtar Donetsk was purely tactical with manager Mikel Arteta fearing another red card for his team.
The Gunners have been reduced to ten men in three matches this term, resulting in them dropping points on each occasion.
White was hauled off at half-time by Arteta in Arsenal’s victory over ShakhtarGetty
Declan Rice, Leandro Trossard and William Saliba have all been shown an early bath, with the latter to miss out on Sunday’s crunch clash against Premier League leaders Liverpool.
And White threatened to be Arsenal’s next star to be given their marching orders in Tuesday night’s 1-0 Champions League win at the Emirates.
The versatile right-back was booked for a late challenge on winger Eguinaldo, which left the Brazilian requiring medical attention.
Eguinaldo had the beating of the ex-Brighton man in the first half, and with a clash away at Inter Milan on the horizon, Arteta refused to gamble on White’s fate.
He subsequently brought him off ahead of the second half – shuffling up his midfield and defence in the process.
Midfielder Mikel Merino came on in White’s place, with Thomas Partey moving to right-back, while Declan Rice dropped into the No.6 role.
Commenting on his decision in his post-match press conference, Arteta said: “Ben was my decision to take him out, he had a yellow card.
“We have played enough with ten men in certain periods.
“They had a lot of intensity on that side and a lot of attacking players on this side, we didn’t want to take any chances.”
Arsenal fans will surely have a breathed a sigh of his relief that his exit due to tactical reasons with the club in the midst of an injury crisis.
Arteta feared White could have been sent off following his bookingGetty
Skipper Martin Odegaard has been out since the start of September, while Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber haven’t featured since the October international break.
And against Shakhtar, Riccardo Calafiori added to the club’s woes after going off with a suspected knee knock.
Speaking of the Italian, Arteta remarked: “With Riccy it’s something different, he felt something.
“I don’t know the extent of that so in that sense it’s not great news.
Calafirori’s potential spell on the sidelines spells bad news for Arsenal ahead of welcoming Arne Slot‘s rampant Liverpool to north London.
Already without Saliba, Arteta will be forced into tinkering his backline, which will likely see White shifted back into the heart of defence.
Should Timber be ruled out once more, Partey may be deployed at right-back, with either Oleksandr Zinchenko or Jakub Kiwior coming in at left-back.
