Arsenal will resume their Premier League campaign with a home clash with Nottingham Forest, as the key duo return to action.
Arsenal will aim to make a winning start to life after the international break when they host Nottingham Forest at the Emirates on Saturday. There are still some injury issues left to be resolved in this squad, although the game could see a key duo returning as the manager ponders a major tactical tweak.
During his pre-match press conference, Mikel Arteta addressed some ongoing fitness issues in detail, such as those of Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu. He also confirmed the availability of key English duo Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka following their withdrawal from the international games.
One other concern during the break came when Leandro Trossard left the pitch while playing for Belgium with an apparent injury. Arteta said there were no concerns, as he provided his overall update, “There’s been some positives, some others not so. Trossard seems to be OK, he trained this morning and seems to be feeling good. We will assess everything with the doctor right now, as he was able to be part of that session, so that’s good.”
He also confirmed the availability of Saka and Rice while also touching upon Ben White in some detail. The defender, together with the club, decided to undergo a surgical procedure to resolve a problem supposedly with his knee. Arteta confirmed he will be out for months without giving up the exact timeline.
Arteta said, “Ben is going to be out for months. It’s been different kind of struggles, it’s never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision in the last few weeks, unfortunately. We know that Ben is going to push every boundary but it got to a point where we had to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.”
“He agreed with that, and obviously it will keep him out for a few months. We have to see how he reacts post-surgery, I don’t expect him to be out for half a season or year but I cannot tell you exactly [how long].”
Arteta also insisted that Tomiyasu will be out for a few more weeks as he continues to undergo treatment for his knee problem. However, returning from a similar injury was Riccardo Calafiori, with Arteta confirming the Italian will be in the squad for Saturday’s fixture against Forest.
On Calafiori, Arteta said, “Ricci trained today, so his rehab is going really well. He was able to do certain things last week with the physios, and trained on the pitch this week with us and today, so he will be in the squad.”
The squad is still not there yet in terms of optimal availability, meaning Arteta will likely look to tweak his options heading into Saturday, particularly with his backline. The unavailability of Ben White and Tomiyasu does lead to the question of how he will manage the right-back slot in the coming period.
With Calafiori ideally not likely to start games yet, Arteta could continue to use Timber in that left-back slot while utilising Thomas Partey at right-back. Once the Italian returns to full fitness and regains his match sharpness, he could be a regular fixture on the left-hand side, but until then, the manager may tweak things a little bit.
With David Raya settled in that No.1 spot, Arsenal will have William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes in the central defensive setup. Partey and Timber will manage the full-back positions, with Declan Rice set to start in the holding midfield role.
Martin Odegaard will start on the right side of the midfield, with Mikel Merino on the left, as Arteta will use this combo for the first time this season. Saka is expected to start on the right side of the attack, with Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli completing the attacking front three for Arsenal.
Predicted Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Odegaard, Rice, Merino; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli
Arsenal will resume their Premier League campaign with a home clash with Nottingham Forest, as the key duo return to action.
Arsenal will aim to make a winning start to life after the international break when they host Nottingham Forest at the Emirates on Saturday. There are still some injury issues left to be resolved in this squad, although the game could see a key duo returning as the manager ponders a major tactical tweak.
During his pre-match press conference, Mikel Arteta addressed some ongoing fitness issues in detail, such as those of Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu. He also confirmed the availability of key English duo Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka following their withdrawal from the international games.
One other concern during the break came when Leandro Trossard left the pitch while playing for Belgium with an apparent injury. Arteta said there were no concerns, as he provided his overall update, “There’s been some positives, some others not so. Trossard seems to be OK, he trained this morning and seems to be feeling good. We will assess everything with the doctor right now, as he was able to be part of that session, so that’s good.”
He also confirmed the availability of Saka and Rice while also touching upon Ben White in some detail. The defender, together with the club, decided to undergo a surgical procedure to resolve a problem supposedly with his knee. Arteta confirmed he will be out for months without giving up the exact timeline.
Arteta said, “Ben is going to be out for months. It’s been different kind of struggles, it’s never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision in the last few weeks, unfortunately. We know that Ben is going to push every boundary but it got to a point where we had to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.”
“He agreed with that, and obviously it will keep him out for a few months. We have to see how he reacts post-surgery, I don’t expect him to be out for half a season or year but I cannot tell you exactly [how long].”
Arteta also insisted that Tomiyasu will be out for a few more weeks as he continues to undergo treatment for his knee problem. However, returning from a similar injury was Riccardo Calafiori, with Arteta confirming the Italian will be in the squad for Saturday’s fixture against Forest.
On Calafiori, Arteta said, “Ricci trained today, so his rehab is going really well. He was able to do certain things last week with the physios, and trained on the pitch this week with us and today, so he will be in the squad.”
The squad is still not there yet in terms of optimal availability, meaning Arteta will likely look to tweak his options heading into Saturday, particularly with his backline. The unavailability of Ben White and Tomiyasu does lead to the question of how he will manage the right-back slot in the coming period.
With Calafiori ideally not likely to start games yet, Arteta could continue to use Timber in that left-back slot while utilising Thomas Partey at right-back. Once the Italian returns to full fitness and regains his match sharpness, he could be a regular fixture on the left-hand side, but until then, the manager may tweak things a little bit.
With David Raya settled in that No.1 spot, Arsenal will have William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes in the central defensive setup. Partey and Timber will manage the full-back positions, with Declan Rice set to start in the holding midfield role.
Martin Odegaard will start on the right side of the midfield, with Mikel Merino on the left, as Arteta will use this combo for the first time this season. Saka is expected to start on the right side of the attack, with Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli completing the attacking front three for Arsenal.
Predicted Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Odegaard, Rice, Merino; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli