Arsenal's major Premier League clash against Liverpool is finally here as the Gunners will look to restore the eight-point lead over Manchester City at the top.
Pep Guardiola's men showed no signs of complacency with their Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich on the horizon as they dispatched Southampton with ease. The returning Erling Haaland grabbed a brace while goals for Jack Grealish and Julian Alvarez sealed a 4-1 win.
To regain their comfortable margin, Mikel Arteta must guide his team to a first league win at Anfield in 11 years - and must do it without a key defender. Fortunately, Bukayo Saka looks to have fully recovered from the illness that kept him on the bench for an hour last weekend against Leeds.
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With that said, football.london has rounded up the latest injury news from Emirates Stadium ahead of taking on Liverpool in the Premier League.
William Saliba
William Saliba limped off in Arsenal's exit from the Europa League against Sporting CP, suffering an issue with his back that forced the youngster to be substituted. The Frenchman then missed the clash with Crystal Palace, as well as the aforementioned win over Leeds at the weekend.
According to Daniel Cutts of The Sun, Saliba will miss this weekend's trip to Anfield. Writing on Twitter, Cutts said: "William Saliba is set to miss Arsenal's clash at Liverpool on Sunday as he struggles with a back injury", with the Evening Standard also reporting that he is a doubt for the clash.
football.london understands that the French international was seen walking comfortably through the mixed zone after the match against Leeds on Saturday, similar to what he did after both the Sporting CP and Crystal Palace outings. With it being a back injury, it is tough to gauge just how big the issue is.
Saliba was also missing from the latest set of Arsenal training pictures ahead of Liverpool.
What Arteta has said: "We are trying to manage him in the best possible way. Unfortunately he’s not gonna be fit for this game [against Leeds] and we’re trying and he’s trying to do everything to feel better and get back training. But not yet.
"No real changes to the rest of the players who were injured. We have some hope on one who may be able to train tomorrow but we’ll have to see."
Expected return date: Unknown
Bukayo Saka
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta confirmed on Friday that Bukayo Saka is available for the Gunners clash against Liverpool with a simple three-word answer.
Expected return date: Liverpool (A) - April 9
What Arteta said: "He's fine, yeah."
Eddie Nketiah
During Gabriel Jesus' absence, Nketiah rose to the challenge and fired Arsenal to a number of pivotal wins. However, due to an ankle injury, the forward has been absent in recent weeks, football.london understands. The forward could return to the matchday squad over the weekend though with Arteta's cryptic injury update possibly in relation to Nketiah.
What Arteta has said: "He’s getting better. He’s still in the boot. 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.
"No, no real changes to the rest of the players who were injured. We have some hope on one who may be able to train tomorrow but we’ll have to see."
Ben White
Ben White is Arteta's only senior right-back in the squad following Takehiro Tomiyasu's injury and Cedric Soares' loan to Fulham until the end of the season. The Spaniard labelled White as a 'fighter' after the win against Leeds after he overcame injury problems to play the full 90 minutes.
What Arteta said: "He [White] had some issues in the last few days but he’s a big fighter and he wanted to be here.
"With the injury of Tomiyasu, we are a bit short in that position. He scored a goal as well which is good news for him and he was very good again."
Expected return date: Liverpool (A) - April 9
Thomas Partey
Thomas Partey was an unused substitute during Ghana's African Cup of Nations qualification clash against Angola over the recent international break. The Arsenal midfielder was left out as a 'precaution' Ghana boss Chris Hughton revealed after the game.
The north London outfit sent club physio, Simon Murphy, to Ghana with the 29-year-old in a desperate bid to ensure the key midfielder avoids injury on international duty. The Gunners were given a huge boost over the fitness of the midfielder, with pictures showing him present in training ahead of the Leeds tie.
Partey played 60 minutes against Leeds United before being replaced by Jorginho with the three points already secured.
What Arteta has said: "We have a really good relationship with the Ghanaian federation and we have to manage and look after our players.
"They’ve been really positive about it as well. We have to manage our players. It works both ways. He obviously wasn’t fit enough to play the second game but hopefully he’ll be back for the weekend."
Expected return date: Liverpool (A) - April 9
Kieran Tierney
Kieran Tierney started Scotland's European championship qualifier against Spain playing a key role in Scott McTominay's second goal. In the 76th minute, Tierney was forced off after a strong tackle from Manchester City star Rodri.
Tierney was substituted on in the second half of the win against Leeds United, replacing Oleksandr Zinchenko with the three points already guaranteed.
Expected return date: Liverpool (A) - April 9
Expected return date: Early/mid-April
Takehiro Tomiyasu
Takehiro Tomiyasu was substituted inside the first 10 minutes of the Gunners' clash against Sporting CP at the Emirates Stadium. The Japanese defender had overstretched for a tackle early in the match and had to receive treatment on the pitch shortly afterwards and was unable to continue.
The Japan international wasn't in the squad to face Crystal Palace, with it later confirmed he had undergone knee surgery. Now the medical staff have learned the extent of the defender's injury.
An official club statement reads: "Tomi has had successful surgery in London on Tuesday and will be ruled out for the remainder of this season. Everyone at the club will now be working hard with Tomi, so he can join pre-season training ahead of next season."
What Arteta has said: "We don’t know. The doctor is assessing. We have one assessment and I think they need to have another assessment tomorrow. It’s not looking good. Tomi is not one to exaggerate things. He was really concerned straight away and we are concerned."
Expected return date: June
Mohamed Elneny
Elneny started in the FA Cup win over Oxford United and played the whole 90 minutes. However, the Egyptian was absent for Arteta's squad for the 2-0 win at Tottenham, with a knee issue picked up in training ahead of the clash being assessed. Additionally, there was no place on the bench to face Manchester United.
A club statement then confirmed that the former Basel man will be out for an extended period of time, although no timescale was given on his expected return. Elneny has since penned a new deal at Arsenal as he closes in on a return.
Expected return date: Unknown
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