Arsenal had the banana skin tie against Mansfield Town but they didn’t come through it unscathed, picking up an injury inside the first-half.
13:00, 07 Mar 2026Updated 13:17, 07 Mar 2026
Leandro Trossard added to Mikel Arteta’s injury problems after being forced off during the FA Cup fifth round against Mansfield.(Image: Getty Images)
Arsenal have been handed a fresh injury worry after Leandro Trossard was forced off after 37 minutes. The Belgian attacker went down inside the Mansfield half unchallenged and looked frustrated as he trudged off, being replaced by Piero Hincapie.
Mikel Arteta fielded an attacking side against the League One side with a place in the quarter-final, alongside Liverpool, at stake. But the injury to Trossard forced the Spaniard into an early change which forced him to alter his 11, which featured teenagers Max Dowman and Marli Salmon.
Concerns were raised shortly before half-time when Trossard was left on his haunches with no players around him, the early signs suggested that he had an issue with the top of his left leg in the hip area. The Belgian has been forced to battle recurring injury problems throughout the Gunners’ campaign with the North London club competing on all four fronts.
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Arteta moved Norgaard, who deputised in the backline, into midfield allowing for Hincapie to return to the back four alongside Riccardo Calafiori and Cristhian Mosquera and just three minutes later, it paid off.
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Arsenal broke the deadlock as Noni Madueke curled into the far corner with a superb effort.
Liam Roberts could only parry a stinging long-range effort as far as Gabriel Martinelli who teed up the England international and he unleashed a superb effort which nestled into the back of the net.
It was a potential banana skin for the Premier League leaders against the side sitting 16th in the League One table.
Nigel Clough’s side made a positive start in unfamiliar circumstances for the top-flight club. Rhys Oats was a threat for Mansfield and came close with a swirling effort while he proved a problem for Calafiori with the 31-year-old getting in behind on numerous occasions but the hosts were unable to apply the finish.
Dowman came close to opening his account for the senior side but he could only steer his effort straight at Roberts. Meanwhile, the Mansfield goalkeeper was scrambling from Madueke’s corner but saw his blushes spared by the woodwork.
Leandro Trossard receiving treatment before eventually being forced off during Arsenal’s trip to Mansfield.(Image: Getty Images)
For Trossard, it’s more injury woes in what is becoming a frustrating season for the forward. He was forced off last month after going down in the latter stages of the win over Sunderland but he was fit to face Brentford five days later and has been involved in Arsenal’s squads ever since.
However, an ankle problem forced him to miss a couple of weeks action after he was forced off in the first-half against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
It’s a selection problem for Arteta during an important period for the Gunners. They are back in action on Wednesday when they travel to Bayer Leverkusen for their Round of 16 first-leg.
Three days later, they welcome Everton to North London before the second-leg against the German side. Their final match before the international break is the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City on March 22.
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