Arsenal fans and manager Mikel Arteta have been hit with a big injury news as summer signing Mikel Merino has been confirmed out till early November due to a shoulder injury. 

Merino fractured his shoulder in just his first training session with the Gunners and was initially thought to be out for just two weeks, but he’s now confirmed to be out for longer and up to two months. Merino, who only joined Arsenal just days before the end of the transfer window, was injured by Brazilian defender Gabriel.

The 28-year-old Merino signed a deal with Arsenal for around £31m ($41m), and he has yet to make his debut for the club. The earliest possible return date for Merino is a game against Bournemouth on October 20.

His injury creates a problem for the Gunners and Mikel Arteta, who lost Declan Rice to a red card suspension in Saturday’s 1-1 draw at home to Brighton. The former West Ham United player was shown a second yellow card for kicking the ball away.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta described the situation and revealed that Merino was ready to play alongside his teammates.

“He was really excited, and everything looked really good. He landed on the floor, and Gabi [Magalhaes] landed on top of him, and it looked like he had a small fracture, probably. We have to see [how long he will be out]. He was in so much pain. We’ll have to do some more tests on that, and then we’ll have more conclusive answers.” Mikel Arteta said.

The Spanish midfielder has 28 caps, playing all of Spain’s games on their way to the Euro championship in Germany. Merino, who has Premier League experience playing for Newcastle United, moved to Real Sociedad, making a total of 242 appearances.

Arsenal’s season started with victories against Wolves and Aston Villa before Saturday’s disappointing draw.