Four things spotted from latest Arsenal training session with Rice and Timber injury return hint
Mikel Arteta is facing multiple injury concerns ahead of Arsenal’s Premier League clash against Wolves on Saturday, with several key players missing from training.
Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal squad hit the training ground on Friday, preparing for their Premier League clash against Wolves. With a tight schedule between their Champions League match in Belgium on Wednesday and this weekend’s match at the Emirates Stadium, the Gunners are likely to play just one full session at London Colney.
Injuries were the hot topic at Arteta’s press conference on Friday, with concerns surrounding Leandro Trossard, William Saliba, Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber. The latter two featured in the defeat to Aston Villa but were ruled out for the Club Brugge match a few days later.
Saliba has been absent from these two matches and the previous two, while Trossard has only scored 78 minutes in Arsenal’s last five matches. A new potential injury concern has also emerged during training, which could significantly disrupt Arteta’s plans.
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Considering all these factors, Sports mirror has compiled all the key observations from the Gunners’ training session ahead of the Wolves clash.
No rice and wood sign
As expected, neither Rice nor Timber appear in any of the 35 photos uploaded to Arsenal’s official website on Friday evening.
Regardless of whether both men actually participated in the session, it would be predictable if no images featuring either player were shared to keep Wolves in the dark.
The Arsenal game on Saturday night means there is less time between the game and Arteta’s ‘wait and see’ update on both. Given the opposition, the Gunners could certainly get all three points without them, but Arteta would prefer to have the duo and the following midweek break appears to improve their chances of featuring.
Saliba and Trossard also missing
Arteta saying the return of Trossard and Saliba would only be a matter of days came as no surprise when neither of those players were spotted on the training ground.
Given the action and likely workouts both have missed over the past few weeks, it’s difficult to predict either will play a starring role on Saturday night. An appearance on the bench is certainly possible, however.
New injury problem
Ben White was also not seen in the practice photos released Friday. The right-back has been forced to play more than Arteta probably would have liked due to injuries.
Just under half of his minutes this season have come in the last three games and it’s very likely that his load is being managed between games, which could explain his possible absence from practice. It should be noted that he could still have participated, but simply not been photographed.
Help with calafiori
Injury problems have ruled three Arsenal stars out of the Wolves clash, but there is another key player, Riccardo Calafiori, who is unavailable.
The Italian international is serving a suspension after receiving his fifth yellow card of the season last weekend. Under these conditions, it was surprising not to see him starting in Belgium.
It was later revealed that this was due to a minor problem he had against Villa. Therefore, seeing him in the most recent batch of Arsenal training photos would have been a big boost.