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Saka returned form injury during the week (Picture: Getty)
Mikel Arteta is expected to make plenty of changes when Arsenal take on Wigan Athletic in the fourth round of the FA Cup this afternoon.
A busy week for the Gunners continues after their thrilling 1-1 draw with Brentford on Thursday. Martin Odegaard picked up a knock in that game having only just returned to the side after a two-game absence.
While he was able to finish the game, the captain was spotted leaving the Gtech Community Stadium with a limp.
In all likelihood, Odegaard is likely to be rested regardless of any injury today. Arteta made 10 changes to the side that beat Portsmouth in the third round of the competition and in an ideal world, he would do the same today.
Other injuries may not allow for it, however. Mikel Merino could be out for the rest of the season having undergone foot surgery this week.
Kai Havertz is also unavailable again, expected to miss today’s game and the upcoming league matches with Wolves and Tottenham due to a muscle issue.
Ethan Nwaneri has left on loan since the comfortable win at Portsmouth, spending the rest of the season at Marseille.
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Odegaard picked up a knock against Brentford (Picture: Getty)
It leaves midfield options a little light if Arteta does want to rest Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi although Christian Norgaard could come in for a rare start in his preferred position.
At the back, William Saliba missed the Brentford draw through illness. Cristhian Mosquera is available again while there could be more minutes for 16-year-old Marli Salmon.
Viktor Gyokeres appears to be Arteta’s firm first-choice up front again and could be held back for Premier League duty next week, making way for Gabriel Jesus to start.
Arsenal team to face Wigan – Metro prediction
Arteta might not quite have the luxury of making 10 changes as he did in the previous round but we expect key personnel to be rested.
Bukayo Saka came off the bench against Brentford and still looked a little off the pace having missed the last three games.
With Noni Madueke getting through plenty of minutes recently in his absence, this could be a good chance to get some rhythm back.
Arsenal vs Wigan TV channel, live stream and kick-off time
Arsenal vs Wigan kicks off at 4:30pm today (Sunday 15 February).
You can watch the match live on TNT Sports 1 with streaming also available through the Discovery+ app
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