Arsenal have, late this evening, seen their chances of getting the better of Bournemouth on Saturday afforded a timely boost.
For those who may have missed it, alarm bells were set ringing across the Arsenal fanbase earlier today.
This came upon word coming to the fore that the Gunners were facing up to a late injury crisis.
Speaking to the media, Mikel Arteta revealed that no fewer than eight members of his squad had been forced to sit out training on Friday, owing to respective fitness concerns.
Joining long-term absentees Jurrien Timber and Thomas Partey, as well as the more short-term Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard, on the treatment table, were all of Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, William Saliba, and Fabio Vieira:
Mikel Arteta on team news: “Declan [Rice] hasn’t trained yet. We have another session in an hour or two so we’ll have more news about him today. Gabriel [Martinelli] hasn’t trained & we want him back, we need him back, but at the moment he’s not available. Leandro [Trossard] -… pic.twitter.com/t7FCAsT2X8
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) September 29, 2023
Such comments saw the respective availability of such stars thrown firmly up in the air, ahead of Arsenal’s showdown with the aforementioned Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon.
The players in question? Bukayo Saka, William Saliba, and Declan Rice.
Saka, Saliba and Rice all part of the travelling squad for tomorrow’s game. https://t.co/MHT8KpsWyw
— Charles Watts (@charles_watts) September 29, 2023
FOUR key Arsenal players miss training ahead of Bournemouth clash