Arsenal suffer new double injury scare as England announce eight withdrawals before Japan friendly

Arsenal have been handed a new potential double injury concern, as Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka have withdrawn from England duty alongside Noni Madueke.

The latter sustained a blow to the knee in Friday's 1-1 friendly draw with Uruguay, which was initially thought to have been a head injury before he was filmed limping out of Wembley with his leg in a brace.

Madueke was expected to withdraw from the national team prior to Tuesday's friendly with Japan as a result of his blow, and England confirmed on Saturday evening that he had indeed pulled out.

However, Rice and Saka - neither of whom was involved in the stalemate with Uruguay on Friday evening - have also returned to London Colney for 'medical assessment', England have announced.

Rice, Saka and Madueke were part of an initial 35-man group selected by Thomas Tuchel, but the trio are among eight players to have withdrawn ahead of the fixture with Japan.

Arsenal's Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke withdraw from England squad

© Iconsport / PA Images

Manchester City's John Stones is also among the injury withdrawals, as the defender was revealed to have picked up a problem in training before Friday's fixture.

In addition, Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton suffered an unspecified injury in the Uruguay draw, while Newcastle United's Aaron Ramsdale, AC Milan's Fikayo Tomori and Leeds United's Dominic Calvert-Lewin have also pulled out.

Arsenal have just under a week to prepare for their FA Cup quarter-final with Southampton at St Mary's, and it remains to be seen if Madueke, Saka or Rice are deemed fit enough for the trip to the Championship side.

Mikel Arteta's men are already expected to be without Eberechi Eze for between four and six weeks, as the calf injury that the playmaker suffered against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League is more serious than first feared.

Mikel Merino (foot) will also remain sidelined for several weeks, while Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Magalhaes, Jurrien Timber, Leandro Trossard and William Saliba - the latter four of whom pulled out of international games this month - will need once-overs too.

Arsenal injuries: Mikel Arteta mind games or genuine concerns?

While Arsenal are still fighting for a tremendous treble in the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League, the manner of their EFL Cup loss to Manchester City at Wembley was incredibly concerning.

Arteta's men were hurt by the absences of creative focal points Eze and Odegaard, but the pitiful performances from several other senior players suggested that this is a squad treading the burnout line.

Rice in particular did not look like himself in the cup final, while Saka's displays have been in the spotlight for the wrong reasons recently, and both players were in evident need of a break.

The same goes for Gabriel, Saliba and Timber, and it may very well be the case that Arsenal's most dependable players have indeed picked up minor injuries that need assessing, due to their significant workload in recent weeks.

However, that will not stop rival fans from throwing the accusations that Arsenal's injuries are not genuine, and with no fewer than seven big-name players withdrawing from international duty this month, they are not outlandish suggestions.