Mikel Arteta has delivered updates on the fitness and availability of Kieran Tierney, Ben White and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as under-strength Arsenal start to ready themselves for a meeting with Premier League champions Manchester City.
The Gunners are pointless two games into the 2021-22 campaign, with back-to-back defeats suffered against London rivals Brentford and Chelsea.
Several players were missing in a 2-0 loss to the Blues on Sunday, through injury and coronavirus, while a couple more were forced off at Emirates Stadium.
What has been said?
Tierney and Martinelli were unable to complete 90 minutes against Chelsea, with Arteta telling reporters afterwards: "They had to limp off.
"KT had an issue with his quad and Gabi was cramping. He and Bukayo haven’t played 90 minutes for a long time. We’re asking them to do that right now when they’re not fully prepared. They tried really hard, the boys."
What about £50m man White?
Arsenal invested £50 million ($68m) in England centre-half Ben White over the summer, but saw him ruled out of their plans for a clash with Chelsea after posting a positive Covid-19 test.
The Gunners struggled defensively in his absence, with Pablo Mari given a torrid time by Romelu Lukaku, but the 23-year-old must serve a period of self-isolation before building his match sharpness back up.
Quizzed on whether White has any chance of figuring against City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, Arteta said: "I don’t think so, no."
Could Aubameyang face City?
Arsenal captain Aubameyang stepped off the bench for a 29-minute outing against Chelsea having overcome his own bout of coronavirus.
Alexandre Lacazette has also been laid low, while Thomas Partey, Gabriel Magalhaes, Eddie Nketiah and Hector Bellering are all nursing knocks.
Arteta will hope to welcome some senior stars back for a trip to Manchester, including new signing Martin Odegaard, but he does face unwelcome selection headaches in a testing period for the Gunners.
Asked about Aubameyang's fitness and whether he could start against City, the Spanish tactician said: "I don’t know. Auba made a real effort to be able to be on the bench today. He only trained one day.
"He really struggled with illness - he was in bed for a long time but he wanted to be in the squad, he wanted to try to help the team and I thought he did help the team when he came on."
Further reading
- Arsenal hit 128-year low in defeat to Chelsea
- 'The DNA of the club is gone' - Sagna rips into Arsenal
- Odegaard claims lies spread about reasons for Real exit