Positive signs for Arsenal loanee despite injury news | OneFootball

The early signs are positive for Arsenal loanee Ismeal Kabia despite withdrawing from Saturday’s Shrewsbury Town match with an injury.

Photo via Shrewsbury Town on Twitter

Though he’s yet to get involved in the goals and assists for Shrewsbury Town, often playing as a wing-back, Arsenal loanee Ismeal Kabia has had a regular spot in the starting lineup so far.

In the nine matches Kabia has been available to feature, he’s started all nine, but there were concerns that run could be coming to an end as the 19-year-old was forced off in the 79th minute on Saturday.

Shrewsbury’s official social media account confirmed that Kabia was coming off “with an injury”, but didn’t provide any further clarification.

Photo via Shrewsbury Town on Twitter

The good news is that onlookers at the game have suggested the player appeared to go down with cramp before his substitution. If that’s all it was, he may not even need to miss a game.

It’s not surprising that the teenager might suffer with a bit of cramp after his exertions on loan so far. The step up in physicality in senior football is a significant one, but it’s also worth mentioning how much more rigourous the schedule is.

Kabia played 1,938 minutes in the entirety of the 2024/25 campaign, largely playing for the Arsenal u21s. He’s already reached 928 minutes in 2025/26 by mid-October.

With another six or seven months of the season remaining, Kabia is on track to double his time spent on the pitch.

Photo by Harry Murphy/Getty Images

As for how Kabia was playing before his substitution, he continued to provide a threat from his wing-back role.

A clever kick-off routine perhaps would have led to a penalty on another day, as the Arsenal loanee was scythed down in the area. But Shrewsbury’s claims were waved away, with no VAR to intervene.

The team ended up winning the match 1-0 anyway, going three points clear of the relegation zone. Kabia now has a week to recover before a trip to Oldham Athletic next Saturday, October 25th.