Arsenal are sweating on the fitness of Declan Rice ahead of their trip to Bournemouth, a ground where they lost last season after William Saliba was sent off
09:52, 02 Jan 2026Updated 09:52, 02 Jan 2026
Declan Rice
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Declan Rice is an injury doubt for Arsenal's trip to Bournemouth
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has issued an update on the fitness of midfielder Declan Rice ahead of his side's trip to Bournemouth.
The England international was forced to miss the midweek 4-1 demolition of Aston Villa due to a knee issue.
Rice picked up the problem while featuring as a makeshift right-back in the 2-1 victory over Brighton last weekend.
When asked if the swelling had subsided, Arteta declared on Friday morning: "Not yet, we have another session, let's see how he comes today."
After the triumph over Villa, viral video footage showed Rice talking to international team-mate Morgan Rogers and during that conversation, he appeared to indicate his knee had ballooned.
Declan Rice
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Declan Rice missed Arsenal's win over Aston Villa with a knee injury(Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
There is still no timeframe on his return but if there's an element of risk, it's unlikely he will play against Bournemouth as Arsenal do not want the issue to worsen.
Meanwhile, Arteta also confirmed that defensive duo Cristhian Mosquera and Riccardo Calafiori would both miss the game against Bournemouth.
Mosquera has been absent since damaging his ankle in the 2-0 win over Brentford last month while Calafiori was initially named in the starting XI against Brighton but was forced to drop out of the team due to a fitness issue.
Gabriel Magalhaes is expected to start his second consecutive match despite being forced off against Villa with cramp during the second half.
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