Gameweek 9 injury carnage: Arsenal quartet sweat, Jones limps off, Buendía booted, Scarles shoulder shock

Gameweek 9 piles up injuries exactly when rivals needed it most. Arsenal are sweating over William Saliba, Gabriel Martinelli, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori after in-game issues during the win at Crystal Palace. Liverpool lost Curtis Jones to a muscle problem. Elsewhere, Aston Villa’s Emiliano Buendía left in a protective boot and on crutches amid a worrying midfoot/Lisfranc risk, while West Ham prospect Ollie Scarles suffered a shoulder dislocation. With tough fixtures on the horizon, depth will be stretched and excuses will run thin. Expect grim scans, lengthy layoffs and a ruthless audit of squad resilience.

Across the Premier League’s Gameweek 9, post-match medical checks flagged multiple concerns: during Arsenal’s win at Crystal Palace, several starters required assessment; broadcast and tunnel-cam angles showed Saliba moving uncomfortably and Martinelli clutching his groin in stoppage time before heading straight down the tunnel with medical staff. Liverpool withdrew Curtis Jones due to a muscle complaint. Aston Villa’s Emiliano Buendía exited wearing a protective boot and using crutches, consistent with a midfoot concern. West Ham youngster Ollie Scarles sustained a shoulder dislocation in weekend action. Wider chatter referenced squad costs and 2025 assist leaders as the injury narrative intensified.

GAMEWEEK 9 INJURY WRAP ARTICLE 🚑 Arsenal check-ups: • Martinelli, Rice, Saliba, Calafiori Liverpool: • Curtis Jones came off with a muscle issue. More big worries: • Buendia leaves in a boot + crutches (midfoot/Lisfranc risk) • West Ham’s Scarles dislocates his shoulder

@physioscout

Impact Analysis

From a rival’s lens, this is the perfect storm to derail Arsenal’s rhythm and puncture Liverpool’s momentum. Saliba’s withdrawal at half-time against Crystal Palace removes the calmest pillar in Arsenal’s back line; even if the mechanism looked innocuous, defenders rarely exit early unless it threatens performance. Should Saliba miss time, Ben White’s role will be overextended and Arteta could be forced into awkward pairings, inviting errors. Martinelli’s late-game groin clutching screams adductor irritation; high-speed wingers and groins are a cursed combo, and any setback compromises Arsenal’s left-side thrust, isolates Ødegaard, and makes them far more predictable.

Declan Rice on the check-up list is a red flag for their entire structure. If he’s even 5–10% off physically, first-phase build-up and counter-press timing crumble. Calafiori’s status matters too: as a 2024 recruit, his left-footed balance in the back line underpins progression; reduced availability means more minutes for deputies who don’t offer the same line-breaking passes.

Liverpool losing Curtis Jones dents Arne Slot’s rotation and ball retention. Jones glues phases together and protects transitions; without him, the press loses bite and Salah receives less quality service between the lines. At Villa, Buendía in a boot with crutches and a potential Lisfranc risk is every analyst’s nightmare—creative chance creation suffers, even if Morgan Rogers’ 2025 assist tear cushions the blow. West Ham’s Ollie Scarles dislocating a shoulder narrows their full-back options and complicates schedule congestion. Across the board: depth will be exposed, and points will be dropped.

Reaction

Fan chatter split along familiar lines: anxious hosts, gleeful rivals. Arsenal supporters latched onto tunnel-cam snippets showing Saliba limping and debated whether Arteta’s “serious enough to be out for the second half” comment signals weeks, not days. Others highlighted the stoppage-time sprint where Martinelli visibly grabbed his groin before heading straight down the tunnel with staff—fueling fears of an adductor strain. A few tried to calm nerves, insisting there was no obvious in-game mechanism for a major Saliba injury and predicting a swift turnaround.

Neutrals and rival fans seized the moment: reminders that Arsenal’s back four cost a fortune were paired with taunts about depth being tested at last. Liverpool’s base wondered how another soft-tissue issue for Jones affects cohesion, with some pointing to recent defensive wobbliness and conceding trends as warning lights. Villa fans balanced dread over Buendía’s boot-and-crutches images with optimism around Morgan Rogers’ assist form in 2025, arguing the system can carry the load. West Ham voices lamented rotten luck for Scarles, suggesting the timing could choke rotation options. Overall temperature: home camps nervous, rivals smug, and everyone refreshing for scan outcomes.

Social reactions

RE: Martinelli you can see him pull up 4 mins into injury time after sprinting for a ball into the Palace penalty area. He clearly had trouble running after that and kept holding his groin until the FT whistle and he was straight down the tunnel with the physio at the end.

Prash (@prashpav)

Great piece. Thought Saliba was limping after the game. Courtesy: Tunnel cam

Prashant​ Menon (@menoned)

Very cool, great article thanks 👍🏻

Taylor AFC (@TWoods121)

Prediction

Expect conservative timelines that irritate home fanbases. For Arsenal, even if scans are “reassuring,” Saliba’s early withdrawal hints at a 2–4 week management window to avoid re-aggravation, jeopardizing immediate fixtures. Martinelli’s visible discomfort after a maximal sprint screams adductor strain risk; penciling him for 4–6 weeks is prudent, with a stop-start return highly possible. Rice may dodge the worst, but smart clubs downshift minutes for 1–2 matches at minimum when their midfield metronome hits the check-up list. Calafiori’s status likely becomes a week-to-week call; expect non-starts in quick turnaround games.

Liverpool’s Curtis Jones, coming off with a muscle issue, profiles as a 2–3 week absence in a best-case scenario, but Slot may push that to protect medium-term availability—especially with schedule compression. Buendía’s midfoot/Lisfranc scare is potentially season-shaping: even if a full rupture is ruled out, partial involvement can sideline a player for 8–12 weeks and sap explosiveness on return. West Ham’s Scarles, with a shoulder dislocation, normally faces 6–10 weeks out depending on stability and whether surgical tightening is advised.

Table impact? Arsenal’s buildup and left-flank dynamism dip; Liverpool’s control phases stutter; Villa lean harder on Rogers’ creativity; West Ham reshuffle full-back depth. Rivals circle—this injury window is ripe for points swings.

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Conclusion

Gameweek 9 didn’t just deliver results—it exposed fault lines. Arsenal can spin the “nothing obvious” angle all they like, but you don’t remove William Saliba at half-time without a worry that bleeds into selection next week. Martinelli’s groin signals the sort of strain that hates sprints and punishes impatience. If Declan Rice is even slightly compromised, the entire press-and-progression model loses its edge; add Calafiori uncertainty and an expensive back line starts looking disjointed.

Liverpool, meanwhile, will miss the subtle glue of Curtis Jones more than headline writers admit; Slot’s rotations lose stability precisely when fixtures squeeze. Aston Villa staring at a Buendía midfoot scare is brutal—boots and crutches are never for show—and West Ham must now navigate shoulder rehab timelines for Scarles while juggling schedule demands.

From a rival’s seat, the takeaway is simple: momentum is fragile, depth is theory until it’s tested, and the next fortnight will punish any club pretending niggles are nothing. Scan rooms will dictate the table as much as tactics. Brace for conservative calls, delayed returns, and dropped points.