Mikel Arteta has provided an update on the availability of both Thomas Partey and Emile Smith Rowe for the game against Aston Villa this weekend. Neither were in the squad to face Manchester City on Wednesday night.
Partey was a late withdrawal for Arsenal with the Gunners manager explaining that the news came at the last minute. He said when asked when he found out: “Very late, very, very late.”
Arteta has now faced the media ahead of the game against Aston Villa on Saturday lunchtime. Asked about the availability of Partey he explained that he was still unsure whether he would be involved in the crucial must-win game at Villa Park.
READ MORE: Arsenal press conference LIVE: Mikel Arteta on Thomas Partey's fitness, City loss and Jesus
Arteta said: “We have to assess him today again. He had some discomfort, a little muscle discomfort. We have to assess him and see how he is.”
The explanation provided by the Arsenal Twitter feed was that he had a ‘tight muscle’ which Arteta later clarified on Amazon Prime Video that it was a back issue. The words from the Gunners’ boss do not seem to suggest that it’s a serious issue but nevertheless, Arsenal might be without their starting midfielder on Saturday.
Regarding Emile Smith Rowe, having returned to action after recovering from groin surgery, the attacking midfielder re-injured himself soon after and has been out again since. He has been training and Arteta was upbeat about his chances but ruled out a return for Gabriel Jesus.
“Emile is training today, if he’s fine he’ll be in the squad,” he said. “Gabi is still not there.”
Hopefully, Arsenal have a strong a squad as they can going into the game against Unai Emery’s side. The Spaniard has never lost to Mikel Arteta having eliminated Arsenal from the Europa League semi-final with Villarreal in 2021.
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