Former Celtic loanee Benjamin Arthur has suffered a significant injury setback after making a promising start to his season with Portsmouth.
Arthur spent the second half of last season at Parkhead after arriving on loan from Brentford in January as cover for the injured Cameron Carter-Vickers.
The defender made six appearances during his four months in Glasgow and played his part in Celtic’s double-winning campaign, including a crucial contribution in the Scottish Cup victory over Rangers at Ibrox.
Celtic were reportedly interested in bringing Arthur back permanently during the summer, but Brentford rejected the approach and instead sent him to Portsmouth in search of regular Championship football.
The move initially appeared to be paying off. After making his debut from the bench on August 15, Arthur started Portsmouth’s next five matches.
His performances received mixed reviews early on, with the youngster described as “solid” following a 3-1 victory over Lincoln City before enduring some difficult moments in a defeat at Bristol City.
Arthur then produced arguably his best display against Cardiff City, with legendary former commentator Ian Darke describing his performance as “outstanding” as the defender recorded the first full clean sheet of his senior career.
He followed that up with another clean sheet away to Charlton Athletic, only for his progress to be halted days later by a stress fracture in his lower back.
Portsmouth boss John Mousinho said: “Benji’s picked up a stress fracture in his back, unfortunately. A massive blow to Benji, a massive blow to us as well. That’s going to be one that keeps him out for quite a few weeks – we’re probably looking at at least 12.”
The timescale means Arthur is unlikely to return until around the New Year, bringing an abrupt halt to what had been a valuable run of first-team football.
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