Ange Postecoglou - Nottingham Forest
Image credit: Getty Images
Nottingham Forest have been dealt a setback ahead of their Premier League trip to Arsenal on Saturday, with full-back Ola Aina expected to miss out after sustaining an injury on international duty.
Aina, a key figure for Forest in recent seasons, had played every minute of their opening three league matches. However, his run was cut short when he was forced off just 10 minutes into Nigeria’s 1-1 draw with South Africa on Tuesday. Though he managed to walk off the pitch, the defender appeared in visible discomfort.
The injury news comes amid a turbulent week for the club, with Forest parting ways with Nuno Espirito Santo earlier on Tuesday despite the Portuguese coach guiding them back into Europe for the first time since 1996. Former Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou was swiftly appointed as his successor.
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Postecoglou confirmed during his first press conference that Aina would be unavailable for the clash at the Emirates, though the rest of his squad had reported fit.
Ola Aina
Ola Aina is expected to miss the trip to the Emirates on Saturday (Image credit: Getty Images)
“We have a clean bill of health apart from Aina. He had a problem with the national team,” Postecoglou said. “The rest of the boys, today is the first day I’ve had my eyes on them and they’re all fine. Zinchenko is the only one who isn’t fine.”
Oleksandr Zinchenko, who joined Forest from Arsenal on deadline day, is ineligible to feature against his former club. Summer signing Nicolo Savona is expected to step in at left-back.
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Postecoglou, who failed to win any of his four encounters against Arsenal while Spurs boss, acknowledged the challenge of facing Mikel Arteta’s side, who have bolstered their squad significantly this summer.
“Every Premier League fixture is challenging. It’s a great game,” he said. “Mikel has got them off to a good start. They’ve strengthened over the summer.”
Arsenal, meanwhile, are also contending with injuries. Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, William Saliba, Christian Norgaard, and Gabriel Jesus are all expected to miss Saturday’s fixture.
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