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Gervinho ruled out for three weeks

Gervinho was injured in Arsenal's win over QPR © PA Photos

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Arsenal forward Gervinho is set to miss the clash with Manchester United and the North London derby after being ruled out for three weeks with an ankle injury.

The 25-year-old picked up the problem during last weekend's 1-0 victory over QPR, being forced off the field shortly after coming on as a substitute.

In addition to matches with United and Spurs, Gervinho will sit out key Champions League games at Schalke and at home to Montpellier, with the away trip to Aston Villa on November 24 likely to be pencilled in for his return.

Gervinho, who has featured as a central striker this term having spent his first season with the club as a winger, has netted three times in the Premier League from seven starts in 2012/13.

His absence is likely to lead to Wenger asking Olivier Giroud to spearhead the attack at Old Trafford on Saturday, following on from his game-changing introduction as a substitute in the 7-5 triumph at Reading on Tuesday - although Marouane Chamakh, who netted twice at the Madejski, will also be in the running, as will Lukas Podolski.

Meanwhile, Wenger has confirmed that Kieran Gibbs, Wojciech Szczesny and Abou Diaby all have no chance of facing Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

Speaking about the incident-packed triumph over Reading, in which Arsenal trailed 4-0 at one point, Wenger said: "[The defending] concerns me a little bit. When you are 4-0 down after 36 minutes you cannot say it is alright.

"Reading was an irrational game, and some of the players still have heavy legs."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.