Arsenal suffered their first defeat at home this season losing 3-1 to Brighton in the Carabao Cup after Mikel Arteta made ten changes to his starting Xl
William Saliba of Arsenal was brought of in the 63rd minute of the Gunners defeat to Brighton, but there appears to be no immediate injury concern
Mikel Arteta saw his Arsenal side on the receiving end of a defeat for just the third time this season after goals from former Gunner Danny Welbeck, Kaoru Mitoma and Tariq Lamptey ended the Gunners three-game winning run without conceding.
Bukayo Saka was left out of the squad after featuring in all of Arsenal’s games this season but Gabriel Martinelli and Granit Xhaka were both included in the squad and introduced in the second half as the Gunners sought to get back into the game.
Many of Arsenal’s players have learnt their World Cup fate over the last few days with Xhaka, William Saliba and Matt Turner all heading to Qatar with Switzerland, France and USA respectively and will certainly be hoping they avoid any injuries before the competition begins on November 20.
With all that said, here is the latest news on injuries and possible return dates for members of the Arsenal squad:
Fabio Vieira
The Portuguese was given a second consecutive mid-week start for Arsenal after he featured in their Europa League match with Zurich last Thursday and there was concern he would be an early withdrawal.
Vieira went down in the first half and seemed to be in significant pain while on the floor but he was able to continue before being taken off on 72 minutes.
Expected return date: Available for Wolves (A) Nov 12
William Saliba
Arguably Arsenal’s player of the season so far was likely in a wonderful mood after he was called up to the France World Cup squad on Wednesday.
Further showing his impact for the Gunners, he was the only survivor of the Premier League win over Chelsea on Sunday. There may have been some concern surrounding Saliba after he was subbed off for Gabriel on 63 minutes, but it was likely to just give him a rest before the weekend especially with Arsenal chasing the game.
Expected return date: Available for Wolves (A) Nov 12
Mohamed Elneny
After two months out with a hamstring injury, Elneny played his first 90 minutes since Arsenal beat Fulham on August 27.
Arteta had been easing the Egyptian back into the fold with a 60-minute cameo last Thursday and a brief appearance against Chelsea, but Elneny was able to complete the full game, suggesting he is firmly on his way back to full fitness.
Takehiro Tomiyasu
One of the only negatives to come from Thursday’s Europa League victory over FC Zurich was an injury to Takehiro Tomiyasu late in the game.
What Arteta has said: “We don’t know. He has had a muscular issue and had to come off because we don’t want to take any risks. But we will assess him in the next 48 hours and decide what is best to do next.”
Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe has struggled to get his season underway so far, suffering with injury from pre-season before making his return from the bench against Manchester United last month. However, he then got injured in the warm-down at Old Trafford.
The England international has since undergone surgery which is set to keep him on the sidelines for an extended period, with no return date set as of this moment.
What Arteta has said: “That’s been an ongoing issue that he’s had. He’s had some discomfort in the groin area and hasn’t had any continuity this season,” the Arsenal boss told reporters in a press conference before the 3-0 win over Brentford a couple of weeks ago. “It’s something we are trying to assess.
“We’re trying to help him as much as possible in any way we can because we need him fit, we need him available, and we need him performing at his best level because he’s such an important player for us. Unfortunately, for this period and periods last year, we haven’t had him.”
