Arsenal have been handed a blow to their hopes of welcoming William Saliba back after the defender missed training on Tuesday.
The Frenchman has been absent for several weeks now after suffering a back injury in the Gunners' Europa League exit to Sporting CP. Saliba was forced to withdraw from the France national team in last month's international break and has missed the past three Premier League games.
In his absence, Arsenal have not managed to keep a single clean sheet. Rob Holding has deputised for the 22 year-old alongside Gabriel Magalhaes but did concede a penalty in the 2-2 draw with Liverpool.
READ MORE: Why Ben White and Oleksandr Zinchenko missed Arsenal open training ahead of West Ham clash
While there was hope that the centre-back would return to action this weekend against West Ham United, it now seems that Saliba will remain unavailable. Sky Sports reporter James Green revealed on Tuesday that he was not part of the Gunners' training session at London Colney.
Mikel Arteta had previously said he was optimistic seeing Saliba return to action this season. "Yeah, I am very hopeful and he is as well," Arteta said before the international break. It currently remains unclear when Saliba will be available for selection.
Despite the Saliba blow, there was some positive news regarding Eddie Nketiah. The striker was part of the open training session after missing March's games with an ankle injury.
Nketiah's absence hasn't been as costly as first feared with Gabriel Jesus' timely return from the knee injury that kept him out for four months. Nketiah's return will bolster Arteta's options in attack for the remaining eight games of the season.
Speaking last month, Arteta insisted that Nketiah was approaching a return. "He’s getting better. He’s still in the boot," the Spaniard said before the second leg against Sporting. "He’s still a few weeks away and we need to be patient. It was a nasty injury and he has a big challenge ahead of him. Thank God it could have been worse. So he’s not in a bad place.
There was no sign of Oleksandr Zinchenko or Ben White on Tuesday. However, the pair's absence was explained by them completing sessions in the gym.
Elsewhere, Mohamed Elneny and Takehiro Tomiyasu are the Gunners' long-term absentees. The duo will miss the remainder of the season.
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