Bukayo Saka could return against Brentford on Thursday.placeholder image
Bukayo Saka could return against Brentford on Thursday. | AFP via Getty Images
Mikel Arteta has provided quietly optimistic injury updates on three key Arsenal stars.
Arsenal will look to maintain their six point lead at the top of the Premier League table when they travel to an in-form Brentford side on Thursday night.
Keith Andrews’ men picked up a big 3-2 win against Newcastle United at St James’ Park last weekend and have lost just two of their last 10 matches across all competitions. Meanwhile, the Gunners look to build on back-to-back wins against Leeds United and Sunderland in the top flight.
Mikel Arteta has been without key players in Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino for those matches but provided an update in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday.
Mikel Merino
Mikel Merino picked up a foot fracture in the defeat to Manchester United last month, having come off the bench and scored in that fixture. The midfielder underwent surgery on Monday and had shared a positive message about the procedure online.
Providing an update on the Spaniard on Wednesday, Arteta said: “I think the doctors were really happy with the way [the surgery] went. Now it’s the start of, obviously, a long process; we’re talking about bone healing. So, we’ll respect the timings, and I’m sure he’s going to do everything he possibly can to speed up that recovery. The time frames we’re talking about are months - whether it’s three, four or five, we don’t know.”
Potential return date - Unknown
Max Dowman
Arsenal have been without the services of teenage superstar Max Dowman since the midfielder suffered ankle ligament damage in the middle of December. It had been hoped that the 16-year-old could be available for the upcoming North London derby against Tottenham Hotspur.
This week, Arteta said: “He’s doing very well, I think he will be with us in a week or so, and then he can pick up the rhythm and be available for us.”
Potential return date - Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal, February 22
Bukayo Saka
Bukayo Saka was due to take his usual place in the starting XI against Leeds United at Elland Road at the end of January but was forced to pull out after feeling a niggle in the warm-up. The England international has been struggling with a hip problem and missed out of the Carabao Cup game against Chelsea, as well as the win over Sunderland on Saturday.
Last week, Arteta teased that the player would be back ‘very soon’ and didn’t speak of any setback on Wednesday, saying ‘we will see’ when asked for an update.
Potential return date - Brentford v Arsenal, February 12
Martin Odegaard
Mikel Arteta was also referring to club captain Martin Odegaard when giving his cryptic ‘we will see’ answer. The Arsenal boss had previously put the midfielder’s recovery time to ‘a matter of days’ ahead of Sunderland but the 27-year-old did not end up making the squad.
Odegaard has missed the last two matches with the ‘niggle’ but could be in contention to return on Thursday night against Brentford.
Potential return date - Brentford v Arsenal, February 12
Leandro Trossard
Arsenal winger Leandro Trossard picked up an assist in a strong showing against Sunderland at the weekend but came off with 89 minutes on the clock. Given the stage of the game, that could have been routine, but the Belgian did appear to pick up an injury problem.
That seems to just be a knock with Arteta putting Trossard in the same category as Saka and Odegaard as players who could return on Thursday.
Potential return date - Brentford v Arsenal, February 12
In other news, Arsenal predicted XI vs Brentford: Three changes made after Sunderland win including Viktor Gyokeres decision.
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