Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta revealed that some first-team players who have been out with injuries for a while are now close to returning to the squad and training.
The boost comes ahead of the second fixture in a big week for Arsenal as they prepare to face Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League.
Arteta spoke at length about those who might be coming back from injury, trying to manage those who have been out for a long time and also the importance of competition in the squad.
“They (Martinelli and Madueke) are," said the Gunners boss.
"We're going to have a meeting now to decide on Martin (Odegaard). He was very close for the previous game, so we are hopeful that tomorrow he can be in the squad as well
(On Viktor Gyokeres and Kai Havertz recoveries), “Really good, both of them. In the next few days, they're going to have a repeat scan to see how everything is and where we can push them for the weekend.
(On Gabriel Jesus)“ Yeah, he's quite close to be fair, and it's earlier than we expected. In the next few days, he's going to have another step to make, with a game that we're going to organise for him, and after that, he's just going to be knocking on the door, because he's a winner.
(Trying to bring those who have been injured back into the squad) “Especially because they've been out for a long period of time, six, seven, eight weeks, and that's quite a long time, but to be fair, when I see them training today as well and how willing they are, all of them to play a part to start, ideally, in the camp, it's great. So they seem to be in a good place, we have to manage that because we have a very demanding week and opponents, but they will manage to bring it in, which is great to see, and the rest are great.
“Well, we have to look at the individuals obviously and make sure that they are ready to start a game like this, and the second one as well is for how long they can play. We need to be very mindful about how many of those players we put on the pitch because most of them might not be available to finish 90 minutes, so we need to be conscious about the subs that we need to use, how we're going to use it, the windows that we have, in order to be very efficient with our decision-making throughout the game, and we'll plan in regards to that.
(Having to decide between players to start) “The priority is for the team to be as efficient as possible, and to win football matches is priority number one, and they're going to have to deal with those situations. Players are going to have to have merit to play, and the higher the standards each individual puts in, the higher the level of the team is going to be. So we're going to have to live with that in a really positive way because it's something extraordinary.
(Importance of competition) “It is and it has to be. I'm thankful that we have improved the depth of the squad and the quality compared to previous years as well because it's going to be more needed than ever. Football this season compared to last season is already different. Three seasons ago it was a different league, and I wanted to be conscious of that. The other teams and the other squads in the league are built in the same way.