Oleksandr Zinchenko has been missing for Arsenal since the North London Derby but Mikel Arteta provided an update on the Ukrainian ahead of the game against PSV. He told football.london in the pre-match press conference that the left-back would return before the World Cup.
Both Zinchenko and Gabriel Martinelli missed the last Arsenal training session before the game with PSV in the Europa League. Asked about the fitness of the Arsenal pair he said: "No they’re not ruled but we will see tomorrow what we decide."
Pushed further on Zinchenko's potential injury problems and whether they would be a long-term issue Arteta was dismissive of this. He said: "No I don’t think so but he had a recurring injury in his calf."
READ MORE: Arsenal press conference LIVE: Mikel Arteta on PSV rotation, Europa League and Martinelli injury
He simply replied "Yes" when asked if the 25-year-old would return before the World Cup. Despite not ruling out his attendance for tomorrow's game, the range of time in which Arsenal fans could still see the summer signing play for the club remains significantly large.
If it is not against PSV then the last opportunity would be in the final Premier League game before the winter tournament gets underway. Arsenal travel to Wolves on November 12, giving a 24-day period that Zinchenko could return within.
In his absence, Arteta has used both Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney. The Japanese international had an excellent performance in a less familiar role against Mohamad Salah and Liverpool but looked to struggle in the away game with Leeds United.
Tierney meanwhile has remained patient and taken the opportunities in the Europa League. When he came on at the weekend against Leeds and Tomiyasu returned to his more natural right-back role, there was a significant shift in the comfortability of the side.
However, with the significant number of games, the Arsenal performances have appeared to dip in intensity. A return of Zinchenko would offer Arteta further options in both defence and midfield, something he would very much like to have.
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