Ahead of the Gunners’ return to Europa League action on Thursday, Arsenal injury news continues to dominate the pre-match gossip. According to Football.London, the North London club could be boosted by the return of several key individuals.
The European competition is becoming increasingly important for Mikel Arteta‘s men, with a mid-table finish on the horizon.
Arsenal will be hopeful of eradicating the performance and subsequent result against Liverpool out of their minds and put one foot into the semi-finals on Thursday.
Arsenal Injury Updates: Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka, Kieran Tierney and Granit Xhaka
Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka Return to Training
Arteta left Smith Rowe out of the squad that lost to Liverpool last weekend due to a ‘tightness in his quad’, as described by the Spaniard. However, the 20-year-old could be back in contention come Thursday, having trained during the week.
Similarly, Saka has returned to training this week, suggesting he may play somewhat of a part in Thursday’s tie. The teenager suffered a hamstring strain late on against West Ham United in March and was forced to miss out on the England squad.
When questioned on Smith Rowe and Saka’s availability for Thursday, Arteta said: “I don’t know. Today I cannot answer to that because I don’t know.”
Kieran Tierney and Granit Xhaka Updates
Tierney limped off in Arsenal’s 3-0 defeat to Liverpool on Saturday – a worrying sight for the Gunners. The Scotsman was enjoying his longest spell of appearances after struggling to stay fit with the London club thus far. It seems unlikely that he will return for Thursday’s clash, with a time-frame not yet in place.
Xhaka has racked up an impressive number of appearances since joining in 2016. He has barely missed a fixture through injury and has particularly shone next to summer singing Thomas Partey. But, the Swiss international fell unwell on Friday morning, forcing Arteta to re-think his squad.
Xhaka has since returned to training and will be available on Thursday night.
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