Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard will return to the Arsenal starting lineup when they take on Everton at the Hill-Dickinson Stadium on Saturday.
Arsenal will be eager to continue the recent winning run when they lock horns with Everton at the Hill-Dickinson Stadium on Saturday night. Mikel Arteta has received a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Ben White is the latest absentee after picking up a hamstring injury in the game against Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend. The English international has joined Gabriel Magalhaes (groin), Cristhian Mosquera (ankle), Kai Havertz (knee), and Max Dowman (ankle) in the treatment room.
However, Riccardo Calafiori is available after serving a suspension last weekend. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Arteta provided fitness updates on White, Gabriel, and Havertz.
The Arsenal manager said, “Yeah he’s [White] out. He’s evolving well, it’s not a major injury, but it will keep him out for a few games, I think. Ben is a really fast healer as well, so there’s hope that we’re going to have him in the next few games. He’s [Gabriel] pushing hard, as he always does every time he’s out, and he’s evolving really well.”
“He’s doing pitch sessions, so he’s not too far. We have to see in the next stages of that rehab how he progresses, but we are quite positive about it. He’s [Havertz] progressing really well and quite fast in the last few weeks, so yeah, we are really positive that if everything continues like that in the next training sessions, he’s going to be with us soon.”
During his presser, Arteta also discussed Martin Zubimendi’s fitness after the Spanish midfielder sat out an open training session earlier this week. The Arsenal boss said, “There was a lot of management for a few players who played a lot of minutes lately, so that’s probably the reason why.”
“In the small windows that we have, we make sure that we look after him and he understands that every possibility and every chance you have to look after yourself, you have to take it in this league. The demands are going to be really, really high, but I think he’s coping really, really well with the league, with all the challenges that the league brings. It’s a new club, a new country and I think he’s been exceptional.”
David Raya is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Arsenal lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Everton on Saturday. The backline will feature Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Piero Hincapie, and Riccardo Calafiori.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice in the double pivot. Martin Odegaard will reprise the no. 10 role, with Leandro Trossard and Bukayo Saka being the two wide attackers. Finally, Viktor Gyokeres will lead the line for the away side against Everton this weekend. So, Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Martinelli will be the backup options on the bench for the Gunners.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Raya; Timber, Saliba, Hincapie, Calafiori; Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Odegaard, Trossard; Gyokeres
