Arsenal provide injury update on Olivia Smith after withdrawing from international duty

Arsenal have provided an injury update on their superstar summer signing Olivia Smith after she withdrew from international duty.

Smith has left the Canada camp before their final international of the break against Netherlands.

Olivia Smith injury update

It has been reported that Smith suffered from a hip injury while representing Canada in an international friendly.

In a club statement, Arsenal said:” Olivia Smith has withdrawn from international duty after sustaining a hip injury in Canada’s 1-0 defeat to Switzerland on Friday.

“The 21-year-old forward has returned to Arsenal for further assessment and treatment.”

Canada are still yet to play against Netherlands in their final international friendly of the break, but Smith will be absent.

The 21-year-old managed just 37 minutes in a loss to Switzerland before she was forced off with a hip injury.

Mixed fortunes for Smith with Arsenal

Arsenal broke the women’s transfer record when they signed Olivia Smith from Liverpool in summer.

The forward became the first player in women’s football to sign for £1million. Smith’s record fee has since been broken by two different WSL signings.

Life with Arsenal started off to a flyer for Smith, who was compared to club legend Kelly Smith after a fast start to her career in North London.

Since scoring on her debut against London City Lionesses Smith is yet to score again for the Gunners.

Arsenal are currently five points behind Chelsea in the WSL. The Gunners will need Smith firing on all cylinders if they are to cause an upset in the league.

With that being said, there has been no timeline provided yet on when Smith will return from her hip injury.

Having been forced off before half time on international duty, it is unlikely that Smith will play a part in Arsenal’s next league clash against Leicester this weekend.

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About Oliver Taliku 315 Articles
Olly Taliku has worked with highly respected sports and gambling websites where he has produced hundreds of articles, as well as being published with Burton Albion and Chesterfield FC. At Burton Olly worked closely alongside the women's team, producing mainly matchday content including reports and interviews. He also has experience as an accredited Premier League and EFL writer for Prost International where he worked during the 2021/22 season to produce matchday content as an on location reporter. Olly specialises in women's football as well as long form SEO content plus news and tips. While he enjoys writing about all football, Olly supports Arsenal passionately as a lifelong fan of the club.