Mikel Arteta says Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko are edging closer to a return to action but he wouldn’t be drawn on whether they will be available for tomorrow night’s clash against Newcastle.
Partey was pictured in first team training last week but didn’t travel to Portugal for Wednesday’s match against Porto. The Ghana international has already suffered a couple of setbacks in his rehabilitation of a hamstring problem and the club are clearly treating him with caution.
“Let’s see, we have another session today,” said Arteta when asked about the midfielder on Friday.
“Obviously, he’s been out for many, many months now and we need to really nail the timing and when he has enough in the tank to compete. But I think he’s very close.”
As for Jesus, who played with a knee injury at Nottingham Forest and has subsequently missed four games, and Zinchenko, who is struggling with a recurrent calf problem, he continued: “He [Jesus] has done a few things and Alex is not far too.”
The news is less positive about Takehiro Tomiyasu. It was hoped the Japan international would be reintegrated to the squad after his country’s Asian Cup campaign but he’s not made any of the last three squads. It’s believed he could have aggravated a calf issue that was bothering him at the start of the year.
“Still a little bit more [time],” was Arteta’s short response when pressed on when the full-back might return.
As the final third of the season approaches, Arsenal fans are hoping that Jurrien Timber will have some part to play having suffered an ACL injury on the opening weekend of the Premier League campaign.
While the manager wouldn’t put a timeline on the Holland international’s long-awaited return, it’s heartening to hear he’s going to get more involved with training sessions in the coming week.
“I really hope so,” said Arteta when asked if Timber will play before the season ends.
“He’s been really well. He’s been with some players around now on the pitch. He’s going to start to do some bits with us in the next week or so. And then we have to see how that evolves, how his confidence level, his fitness level, and hopefully the answer is yes [he will play].”
On the injury situation in general, he added: “Obviously we have missed some big players and we still are, but you have to adapt to that.
“We want them back, we need them back as quick as possible and we know the impact that those players are going to have when we have the full squad ready.”
Whats with photoshopping alcoholic beverages onto press conference pics?
Because we want to.
It’s as healthy as the crap drink the club promotes
Can you photoshop some white lighting cider in to the next one?
There’s one prime reason …
Nice one.😎
I’ve just scanned my brain quite thoroughly and can’t think what this might be referring to. Is it because of the celebration police? Or lifting team “spirit”? Surely not, so please, one more clue
Prime liquid (don’t think one can call it a drink) is a sponsor of Arsenal. Giving it pride of place in images on Arseblog is intolerable. Blogs’ happiness and contentment has been sponsored by fine spirits for over 50 years. Therefore, photoshop.
Hah cheers for that, well I wasn’t even aware of this brand or their drinks, which i find both funny and scary in equal measures. Hopefully it’s more the case that my brain kind of automatically photoshops these kinds of chemical energy drinks out of my consciousness anyway, seeing as they serve no purpose and would just be a waste of storage space, rather than any sort of amnesia i should worry about.
Either way I fully support this policy mimicking what my brain has apparently been doing anyway.
And remember, that cup competition is called the League Cup.
Surely not sponsorship 😉
Just curious if there’s an in joke that some of us have missed?
Yes, there is.
Talented though he is, Arsenal have played around 180 games since Partey joined and he’s only made something like half of those. How different things might have been if we could have kept him fit.
It’s really weird and I don’t like it. Probably a sign that we’re going the same way as the Mancs, with everything plastered with adverts. I know we need to build sponsorship revenue but really?
It’s blogs doing it mate…
Haha, I think I’m still traumatised by porto!
You should see what happens after you drink it!
That was obviously a gift from the Porto manager.
while i love tomi, i can’t help but wonder why did he decide to risk his health and his availability for his team for a few asian cup games. he could’ve gone there and be part of the team while acknowledging he couldn’t play full games. and while he has a commitment with his countrymen, he also has one with his club teammates, whom he sees every day and need him to win the premier league. i don’t know him nor in what did he base his decision on, but since im not japanese but an arsenal fant, i can’t… Read more »
“A few Asian cup games” – can’t help but read the dismissiveness. This is their equivalent of the Euros. I know Asian football isn’t as famous as European football, but it’s a bit degrading to say (intentionally or not) that they matter less isn’t it? Would we begrudge any of the English players for wanting to play for England in the Euros, or any other country? I can see the love for Tomi and totally get the disappointment but would be better to channel it differently in my opinion.
It’s a tournament that includes Australia, Uzbekistan, Hong Kong and Iraq. The geographic area is absurd. It’s like having the Euros with Mexico, Zambia, and Greenland thrown in. The standard of football is below that of the Euros, Afcon, and the Copa America. That’s the situation. If that turns people on, fine. But in Tomi’s particular case — an injury-prone pro who is playing in elite club competition for a good wage — he should think twice about participating in a mediocre tournament for title to a geographic abstraction.
I don’t know that your post merits a response but what I interpret from it is along the lines of ‘bad luck if your home country is in a substandard region of the football world and therefore not worth representing at the international level’. I don’t think you get it. For anyone who isn’t born in Europe, Africa, or the Americas, is it any less of an honour and privilege to represent your country, or any less of a reflection of how elite you are when you are selected? Footballers, wherever they come from, tend want to play football, for… Read more »
i see why my comment might have come across like that, but it wasn’t my intention to downgrade asian football at all. euros, copa america, afcon or whatever, i see them all well below champions league level, even premier league. other people or players may disagree and rather one over the other, but i didn’t mean to disrespect anyone by saying “asian cup”, it was just shorter than “continental cup” and went for it. cheers!
Tomi needs to consider his international involvement. I might be mis-reading it, but he seems to play through the pain for Japan and then comes back to the club in a worse position. Time to share that recovery time around between club and country.
He’s not the first to want to play for his country nor will he be the last. He was fit when he left for the Asian cup and hence played. You always run the risk of players coming back with injuries, whether it’s this competition, AFCON, Nations League, Euro qualifiers, WC qualifiers…. Unless you don’t want any of our players playing in any international games. It’s disappointing that he’s injured yes but I think it’s a bit much to blame him for choosing to play for his country when he was fit to play.
If it was only a risk, I think most people would be ok with that. With players like Tomi and Partey, it’s pretty much a guarantee they’ll come back crocked. And considering the club pay his wages and it’s the business end of the season, it irks fans.
Do Bundaberg rum next!