Zafar Iqbal Leaves Arsenal Immediately — Arsenal News
Arsenal news moved quickly on the club’s medical side as head of sports medicine and performance Dr Zafar Iqbal has parted company with the Gunners with immediate effect. He joined in February 2024, replacing a vacancy left by Gary O’Driscoll’s departure, and the timing lands as Arsenal work through another injury review.
Dr Zafar Iqbal and Arsenal
Iqbal arrived after O’Driscoll left Arsenal for Manchester United a few months before February 2024, ending a 15-year spell in north London. Before joining Arsenal, he had held senior medical roles at Crystal Palace and Liverpool, and he also spent time at Sp*rs and Leyton Orient.
He also serves as chair of the FA Medical Society. That background made him one of the most experienced figures in Arsenal’s performance department, so his exit removes a senior medical voice from a staff group already under strain from repeated absences.
Joaquin Acedo Review
Last month, Mikel Arteta commissioned Joaquin Acedo to conduct an independent review of Arsenal’s injury situation. Acedo is a freelance physiotherapist, had hinted at the work in an Instagram post in September, and was present in Budapest for the Champions League final.
He joined Arsenal’s trophy parade through the streets of Islington 10 days ago, a sign of how visible his involvement had become around the club. It remains unclear whether Iqbal’s sacking has any connection with that review, but the overlap between the two developments will be hard to miss for anyone tracking Arsenal’s medical structure.
Arsenal Injury Setbacks
Arsenal’s injury list has been heavy enough to put the department under scrutiny. Ben White, Gabriel Jesus and Jurrien Timber have all undergone knee surgeries, while Timber also withdrew from Holland’s World Cup squad with a groin problem.
William Saliba has battled a persistent back problem. Gabriel, Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz have all required hamstring operations, Havertz has also undergone a procedure on his knee, Mikel Merino needed surgery on a broken foot, and Riccardo Calafiori and Martin Odegaard have both spent spells sidelined with various complaints.
For Arsenal, the practical effect is immediate: the club has removed one senior figure from the medical and performance chain while the injury review remains part of the wider picture. The next test is whether the changes around the department lead to a clearer structure before more fitness setbacks pile up again.
