Mikel Arteta has provided another update on the fitness of several first-team players as we prepare to face Everton on Saturday.
The boss was first asked about Ben White, who was forced off with a hamstring injury in our 2-1 win over Wolves last weekend.
“Yeah he’s out,” Mikel said at the Sobha Realty Training Centre on Friday. “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.”
Another defender hoping to return in the coming weeks is Gabriel, and the boss is optimistic that we could see the Brazilian sooner rather than later.
“He’s 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.”
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As well as hoping to see Ben and Big Gabi back soon, Mikel also had a positive update on Kai Havertz, who had been missing since sustaining a knee injury in our win at Old Trafford on the opening day of the Premier League season.
“He’s 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.”
Asked if he knows if there is a particular game in mind for Kai’s return, the boss didn’t give much away, but hinted that there is a plan to bring the forward back into the fold.
“I don’t want to say because I think in that last part, especially after such a long time, that after the rehab, I think we need to be cautious," he added. "We need to go really firmly with every step that we take along the way to make sure that when he’s back, he’s back and he’s back for the long term.”
In addition to discussing our injured players, Mikel also addressed the physical challenge facing Martin Zubimendi, who sat out our open training session earlier in the week.
“There was a lot of management for a few players who played a lot of minutes lately, so that’s probably the reason why," he said on Martin's absence.
"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.”
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