Arsenal face Fulham this weekend in another game that is a must-win if the Gunners want to push for the Premier League title this season.
The north London club are some way off the pace right now in the race at the top of the Premier League. However, their recent run of form has been very promising.
Indeed, Arsenal have now won four games on the spin in convincing fashion.
Sadly, it’s not all good news out of the Emirates, and speaking to Sky Sports News, James Cole has shared a negative update on two of Arsenal’s key players.
The journalist was reporting from Arsenal’s training ground, and he noted that Gabriel Magalhaes and Riccardo Calafiori were not training with the team outdoors on Friday morning.
Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal, looks on prior to the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester United at Emirates Stadium on Septem...
Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Gabriel and Riccardo Calafiori miss Arsenal training
Cole shared an update from London Colney on the two Arsenal defenders.
The journalist noted that Calafiori and Gabriel weren’t training with the rest of the team, stating that he’d been told the pair are training alone indoors.
Gabriel has earned serious praise for his performances this season, so his absence is a real blow.
“They didn’t have Gabriel or Riccardo Calafiori for that win did they? Both have been struggling as of late,” Cole said.
“The bad news is that neither player has come out here on the grass at Arsenal’s training ground this morning. That said, this is not matchday minus one, they play on Sunday, it’s matchday minus two. I’m told they are training indoors. I will try to get more from Mikel Arteta on Gabriel and Calafiori’s fitness later, but he doesn’t give much away.”
How could Arsenal line up against Fulham
Arsenal may well be heading into the game against Fulham without a number of their key defensive options.
Alongside Calafiori and Gabriel, Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu also remain sidelined.
White had surgery on his knee a few weeks ago, so he’s out of action, while Tomiyasu has been out pretty much all season long.
Arsenal may have to field something of a makeshift XI vs Fulham.
Arsenal's potential starting XI against Fulham
Arsenal are likely to field a similar team to the one that beat Manchester United in midweek, but, with all due respect, Fulham do represent a tougher test than the Red Devils these days.
Fulham are no pushovers. The Whites are sixth in the Premier League, and they’re on a club-record run of scoring in 13 consecutive Premier League games.
With former Arsenal players, Alex Iwobi and Emile Smith Rowe in fine form at the moment, the Cottagers could well cause Arsenal a few problems this weekend. After all, Marco Silva’s side did take four points from Arsenal last season.
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