‘He is okay’: Mikel Arteta confirms 22-year-old isn’t injured and could play for Arsenal vs Sporting tonight
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has now said that Fabio Vieira is fit to play against Sporting CP tonight.
Arteta was addressing the media, via Football London, ahead of their Europa League tie.
All eyes are on how strong Arsenal go in the Europa League with a title challenge to maintain at home.
There’s a mounting injury problem for Mikel Arteta up front, with Gabriel Jesus, Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard all potentially unavailable.
Nketiah has been missing from training in the build-up to the game, and has been struggling with a knock for weeks.
Gabriel Jesus has travelled with the squad to Lisbon, but whether he features is another matter.
The last thing Arteta would need is Fabio Vieira also being unavailable for Arsenal tonight.
However, he has shared that the playmaker is fit to feature, and has even been calling on the 22-year-old for advice in the build-up to the game.
Arsenal manager Arteta confirms Vieira is fit to play tonight
Arteta was asked by the press if Vieira is in Portugal and OK to play, to which he replied: “Fabio is OK.”
The Spanish manager then admitted he had called on Vieira to give him some advice about facing the Portuguese club.
“For sure [we spoke to him about Sporting].
“It was the first thing we did because it is great to have the knowledge and understanding of someone from the country that knows the manager, knows the team-mates.
“It is always very useful and he spoke really highly.”
Vieira has faced Sporting five times in his career so far, and has only lost once.
In his last league meeting with the Lisbon-based club, he recorded a goal and an assist too.
Mikel Arteta admitted last week that Fabio Vieira would be starting for Arsenal very soon.
Giving Vieira the nod tonight could mean Martin Odegaard finally gets a well-deserved rest.
Rotation hasn’t been at the forefront of Arteta’s mind this season, with his team in the league barely changing.
He may decide to adapt that approach tonight with a dozen Premier League games left to play
However, the Europa League is there for the taking for the Gunners, and there’s no reason why Arsenal shouldn’t go for it.
