Mikel Arteta has delivered the latest injury update on key attackers Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke as Arsenal prepare to face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday.
Saka has not featured for the Gunners since the Carabao Cup final against the same opponents. When asked about the England international's availability for the Etihad clash.
Will Bukayo Saka play against Man City?
Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Bukayo Saka is ruled out for the match against Manchester City.
"Bukayo is out, that's for sure," Arteta said at the pre-match press conference on Friday.
"He's just starting to do some stuff, so let's see that progression, how quickly we can go through it, and then wait, but at the moment it's not about that," he added.
Will Noni Madueke play?
With Saka ruled out, attention turns to Noni Madueke,
who was forced off during Arsenal's 0-0 draw against Sporting CP in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg. Arteta sounded cautiously optimistic about the winger but stopped short of confirming his participation.
"We have another training session tomorrow. He didn't look that bad after the game, and he was quite positive. He's a player who pushes through pain, so I'm hopeful that he can be available, but we have to wait and see if he's able to train tomorrow. "
The Arsenal boss also addressed the wider injury situation on Jurrien Timber, Martin Odegaard, and Riccardo Calafiori, who missed the Sporting match. On their chances of featuring against City, he said:
"We will try again. Some players are quite close, but the turnaround is short, so we will try tomorrow to push everybody, and if they are in good condition, they will be part of us, and if not, they won't. They haven't been in the last few weeks, unfortunately. "
"We've had to cope with that [injuries] all season and if you look back at the stages and the players that we've missed for big, big, big periods and where we are, it's not normal where we are. But we have coped with that because of our mentality and the solutions that we find, the way the players have stepped up in this moment. And we are where we are. We are still very strong and we will remain the same way," he concluded.
Arsenal fans will now wait on Friday's training session to see whether Madueke can prove their fitness in time for what promises to be a pivotal title-race encounter at the Etihad.
