loan. Djourou made his first appearance of the 2008–09 season, starting the whole game, and kept a clean sheet, in a 1–0 win against West Bromwich Albion in the opening game of the season. He played in both legs against FC Twente in UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, as Arsenal won 6–0 on aggregate. On 22 September 2008, Djourou signed a new long-term contract. Following the absent of William Gallas, he started in the next seven matches for the club. During his first team run ins, Djourou scored an own goal against Chelsea on 30 November 2008, but Arsenal managed to catch up and went on to win 2–1. This lasted until he tweaked his calf in the warm-up and dropped out at the last minute prior to a 2–2 draw against Aston Villa on 22 December 2008. After missing two matches as a result, Djourou returned to the starting line-up against Plymouth Argyle in the third round of the FA Cup and helped Arsenal win 3–1. Since returning from injury, he found himself in and out of the first team for the club. However, on 11 April 2009, in a league match against Wigan Athletic, Djourou suffered a knee injury which later required surgery. But he made a recovery from a knee injury and returned to the first team, and came on as a second-half substitute, in a 2–0 win against Middlesbrough on 26 April 2009. Djourou later made two more appearances later in the 2008–09 season. He went on to make 29 appearances in all competitions. After Touré's departure to Manchester City, Djourou had a chance to break into the starting eleven. However, he suffered a knee injury while on international duty. It was announced on 6 September 2009 that Djourou's recovery period would take an estimated of six to eight months; Arsène Wenger stated: "He will have to be patient this season." After returning to training in April, Djourou made his return from injury, coming on as a second-half substitute the injured Mikaël Silvestre, in the 4–0 win over Fulham in Arsenal's final game of the season, in what turned out to be his only appearance in the 2009–10 campaign. Ahead of the 2010–11 season, Djourou said he's expecting competitions following the new signing of Laurent Koscielny. Djourou appeared two times in the first two months of the season, and was placed on the substitute bench