Arsenal have been handed a new blow with the news of William Saliba's absence for the Gunners against Brentford
William Saliba before an Arsenal game
William Saliba misses Arsenal's clash with Brentford through illness(Image: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
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William Saliba will miss Arsenal's Premier League clash with Brentford due to illness. The defender trained on Wednesday and was in contention to start at the Gtech Community Stadium before having to pull out of the matchday squad.
The 24‑year‑old was spotted in action at the Sobha Realty Training Centre earlier this week, but has now been replaced by Cristhian Mosquera in the starting line-up. Mikel Arteta has relied heavily on Saliba, who has started 20 Premier League games this season.
Saliba was one of four changes to the side that beat Sunderland at the Emirates Stadium last weekend, with Piero Hincapie, Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze also getting the nod. Arteta has been boosted by the returns of captain Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, with both taking a place on the bench.
The attacking pair missed the past few matches through injury. Meanwhile, Leandro Trossard, Ben White, Christian Norgaard and Kepa Arrizabalaga were not pictured in Wednesday's training session.
Trossard was forced off late in the second half of the 3–0 win over Sunderland, though he never went down the tunnel for treatment, suggesting he may simply have been suffering from fatigue.
Elsewhere, Mikel Merino (foot) and Max Dowman (ankle) remain sidelined and were absent from training.
Kai Havertz was also not visible on the grass with reports suggesting he's set for several weeks out with a muscular issue.
Ahead of the game, the gap at the top has been cut to six points after Manchester City's 3-0 home win over Fulham at the Etihad on Wednesday evening.