Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber are all doubts for Arsenal when the Gunners aim to move a point behind Liverpool by beating the Reds at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Wideman Saka missed Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth last Saturday with a hamstring issue, while defender Timber has been out for three games with a muscle problem and Calafiori sustained a knee injury during their 1-0 home win over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Tuesday.
“[Saka] has done a bit of training on the grass,” said Arteta. “How far we can get him to [playing on] Sunday is a different question. We have another day, which is a good thing, but we’ll see.
Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber not in training today ahead of Sunday’s game against Liverpool ❌ pic.twitter.com/iO2KFRrv04
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) October 25, 2024
“[Calafiori] needs more tests. Yesterday he had some, today [Friday] he’s going to have more and after that we will know. Last time, we thought it was really bad and he ended up playing two or three days after, so let’s see how it is.
“[Today was] the first session [when Timber] could have some involvement. He’s been out for a while; we expected him to be further back than where he is at the moment. But again, we have to wait and see.”
Arsenal injuries, suspensions
Arteta gave no updates on absent captain Martin Odegaard (ankle) and full-backs Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) and Kieran Tierney (hamstring).
Influential centre-back William Saliba will not be involved because of a one-game suspension for his red card against Bournemouth.
Arsenal have won 74% of the games they have played with Saliba during his time at the club, dropping to less than 46% when he is not involved. They have also conceded twice as many goals on average when the 23-year-old has not featured.
Keeping out the danger ️⛔️
A solid save from our David 👏 pic.twitter.com/7BJxu6WKdi
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 23, 2024
“We obviously don’t want to be in this situation but we are lucky to have the squad we have and the attitude to react to difficult situations,” said Arteta, praising Saliba’s partnership with Gabriel.
“We don’t feel sorry for ourselves, we face it and we know how good we are. We have different options [in defence]…. we have to find a solution.
“[There’s] so much going on with the back line but we have had to adapt to that and the versatile players have been really useful.”
6 – Liverpool have won their opening six away games in a season for the first time in the club’s history, while they’re the first Premier League side to do so since Manchester City in 2017-18. Competitors. pic.twitter.com/xZ4I1FSsws
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 23, 2024
Arsenal vs Liverpool
Liverpool start the weekend a point above Manchester City at the top of the table but could be overtaken by the reigning champions on Saturday, when the Cityzens host winless Southampton.
“This is a big match, a big opportunity, and we love these kind of matches at the Emirates,” said Arteta. “The team is really looking forward to it.
“We have to maintain playing with dominance and belief. Our belief, energy and commitment is needed in a big match like this.
“Arne Slot’s start has been very good. They are in a really great moment and run. They’re a team who, for nine years, have been competing at the highest level.”
