White, Partey & Jorginho: Latest Arsenal injury news and expected return dates ahead of Real Madrid match

It’s only been a few days since Arsenal pulled off one of their greatest European performances to defeat Real Madrid 3-0 at the Emirates, but now Mikel Arteta’s men head to the Bernabeu to finish the job – and may have to do so without several first team players thanks to fresh injury problems.

Ben White, whose season has been hit hard by fitness concerns, was a surprise absentee from the squad for the 1-1 draw with Brentford on Saturday, while both Thomas Partey and Jorginho were forced off the pitch with apparent knocks.

The good news is that it appears that both Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice, who picked up minor injuries in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final, came through this weekend’s game without incident and should be available, but we’ve got all of the latest updates and expected return dates for the players who might miss out below.

Ben White among defensive doubts for Real Madrid

Defender White has already missed the majority of the current campaign with a serious knee injury and now faces another lay-off after picking up an unspecified knock during training on Friday.

Arteta has not confirmed the exact nature or severity of the issue but told the media after the draw with Brentford that the club “don’t know” if White will be ready to face Real Madrid and will “wait and see.”

Should the former Leeds United man be unavailable, however, it seems as though Jurriën Timber should be fit to start after coming through the final 21 minutes of Saturday's match unscathed.

There is no chance, however, of a return for Riccardo Calafiori (knee), who will be out for “weeks” after being injured during the recent international break and who may not feature again until May despite “progressing really well” with his rehabilitation. Likewise, Arsenal fans will not see either Gabriel (hamstring) or Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) in action, neither of whom are expected to feature again this season.

Thomas Partey and Jorginho updates – and could Kai Havertz play again this season?

Two of Arsenal’s midfielders picked up apparent knocks against Brentford on the weekend, with Partey and Jorginho both withdrawn during the second half – in the case of Jorginho, the issue appeared to be serious enough to persuade Arteta to take him off despite having used all of his substitutions, leaving the Gunners to finish the game with 10 men.

Arteta has since told the media that Jorginho “could not breathe properly” due to what seemed to be a rib injury, acknowledging that it is likely “something significant”. The Italian midfielder will be assessed ahead of the trip to Madrid but appears set for a short spell on the sidelines.

Ghana international Partey will also require assessment ahead of Wednesday night’s game, although it isn’t yet clear what was ailing him. Arteta said simply that Partey “felt something” a little under 10 minutes after scoring the opener against Brentford, and that the club’s medical staff would make a diagnosis over the coming days. As it stands, it is unclear whether he will be ready to play any part in the second leg against Real Madrid.

Elsewhere, Arteta has acknowledged that there is some chance that forward Kai Havertz could make an unexpected return to action before the end of the season. The former Chelsea man underwent surgery on what was expected to be a season-ending hamstring injury in February, but has made sufficiently good progress to raise hopes that he could make an early comeback.

“Hopefully we can have him [before the campaign’s end], but let’s wait,” Arteta said last week. “Once you get to the last stage of that rehab, you can understand better how close or far you are to make that next step.”

Striker Gabriel Jesus, however, remains out of action for the remainder of the 2024/25 season thanks to an ACL injury.