Arsenal will assess William Saliba over the next 48 hours to decide if he's available for Sunday's Premier League clash with Crystal Palace football.london understands.
The Frenchman had to come off with a back injury immediately after Granit Xhaka's opening goal during Thursday night's Europa League clash with Sporting CP. This has created concerns that he could be out for the weekend's game with Palace at the Emirates Stadium.
Takehiro Tomiyasu also came off injured after just nine minutes during the loss on penalties to Sporting. Mikel Arteta described the Japan international's injury as "serious" and he was spotted leaving the Emirates Stadium on crutches. It is understood that Tomiyasu will be out for the visit of Palace at the very least with a clear prognosis expected to be finalised in the coming days.
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The Gunners will also be without Eddie Nketiah for Sunday's match. The 23-year-old is continuing to recover from an ankle sprain that has kept him out of the last four matches. Mohamed Elneny is also a long term absentee.
Speaking after the defeat to Sporting Mikel Arteta backed his side to cope in the potential absence of so many players. "We’ve been carrying injuries throughout the season," the Spaniard said in his post-match press conference.
"We had Emile out for four months, Jesus for four months, Thomas for a month and a half, Alex for two and half months, Eddie for a month and a half. We had quite a lot of injuries already, but we dealt with them. The disappointment is not going to go away it’s there now. But there’s also clarity. It’s 11 games to go now and we have a final against Crystal Palace. We have to recover and put all the focus there and win."
There is some positive news in the fact that Leandro Trossard, Alex Zinchenko and Gabriel should all be fit for Palace despite appearing to pick up knocks during the Sporting game. Gabriel Jesus should also be available after being withdrawn at half time on Thursday in part of a pre-planned change as he continues to get back to full fitness after a long-term knee injury.
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