Arsene Wenger still has Petr Cech and Laurent Koscielny unavailable ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace on Monday.
Arsenal will look to create a winning momentum when they head across London to take on Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Monday night. The match gives the Gunners a chance to go back to 5th in the Premier League table after Manchester United leapfrogged them with a 3-0 win over Sunderland on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Crystal Palace are looking to bounce back to winning ways after their four-match winning streak came to a screeching halt in a 3-1 loss to Southampton on Wednesday. Ahead of the London Derby on Monday, here’s the team news for Arsenal.
The report on that front is bittersweet, as Arsene Wenger only has four players sidelined with injury, but one position remains a major cause for concern for the Arsenal manager.
That is because Wenger has both senior goalkeepers Petr Cech (calf) and David Ospina (back) sidelined with their respective injuries, with neither expected to regain fitness in time for the cross London trip.
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In their absence third choice goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez will continue to deputise in goal, with reserve goalkeeper, Matt Macey joining up with the squad to start from the bench on Saturday.
Meanwhile, centre-back Laurent Koscielny also remains sidelined with the Achilles injury he picked up last weekend, meaning Brazilian defender Gabriel will combine at the heart of the Arsenal defence alongside Shkodran Mustafi.
Lucas Perez is the other first team absentee due to a calf strain, while Santi Cazorla will play no further part this season due to the Achilles injury he sustained in the early part of the season.
But, Wenger does have one player returning to his squad on Monday, with Francis Coquelin available after missing the midweek clash against West Ham United due to personal reasons. Giving his team news update in his pre-match press conference, Wenger said that there are no new personnel availability issues, with Coquelin returning.
He said: “I think from Wednesday’s game, nobody should be out. Coquelin is back available after his family problem. He’s back in contention again. I don’t believe that Cech will be available for Monday night, nor Ospina. These are the two players who will still be out.”
When quizzed on Koscielny, Wenger said that he is a short-term absentee and will certainly miss Monday’s match. He added: “I didn’t mention him because for me he’s out on Monday night. It [his injury] should be short-term.”
