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Arsenal's Hector Bellerin to return 'soon' after injury vs. Chelsea

Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin has thanked fans for their messages of support after he was injured during his team's 3-1 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Bellerin was hurt as Marcos Alonso headed Chelsea in front in the first half, with manager Arsene Wenger adamant he had been fouled.

Alonso scored the opener after winning an aerial duel against Bellerin, who took an arm to the face and then landed hard and had to be substituted.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Wenger said his player had "100 percent" been fouled.

And on his Instagram page, Bellerin wrote: "Thank you for all the messages. I'm recovering well at home and will soon be back on the pitch to help the team fight back."

��...Thank you for all the messages. I'm recovering well at home and will soon be back on the pitch to help the team fight back! �� // �� Gracias a todos por vuestros mensajes. Estoy bien, recuperándome en casa para poder ayudar al equipo lo antes posible! ��

A photo posted by hectorbellerin (@hectorbellerin) on

The defeat left Arsenal 12 points behind their London rivals, and midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain told Arsenal TV the Premier League title had "slipped further out of our hands and there's no hiding from that now."

He added: "The gap is much bigger now and it's going to be hard. But we play for Arsenal Football Club -- if we don't go until the end, we don't deserve to be here. We've got to keep doing that.''