Mikel Arteta provides update on four injured Arsenal defenders
Arsenal travel to Brighton tomorrow with a chance to make history.
A win at the Amex Stadium would make them the first Arsenal side to win their opening eight games of a season for 122 years. Four wins from four in the league so far, plus victories in the Community Shield, Champions League and the Carabao Cup. It’s been the perfect start to the campaign.
Standing in their way is a Brighton side in frightening form. The highest scorers in the Premier League, they thumped Coventry 5-0 away last weekend before completing a remarkable comeback at Old Trafford in midweek. The Seagulls came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 in the Carabao Cup, the first side to do so at Manchester United in 50 years.
It’s a very tough fixture, and marks Arsenal’s fourth away game in a row. Mikel Arteta will want his absent defenders back for this one.
The Gunners played two midfielders at full-back and a 17-year-old at centre-back in the week against Ipswich, with absences to Ben White, Jurrien Timber, Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera. In his pre-match press conference, Arteta was asked for updates on all four injured defenders.
On White: “All good. We have another training session,” the Arsenal manager said, not giving anything away, as usual.
On Timber, Hincapie and Mosquera: “Yeah, we have another session, and they are willing to be part of it, so we will see.”
White went off at half-time against Sunderland and the extent of his injury has been unclear. Arteta’s update today suggests it’s not serious and he could feature tomorrow.
Timber, meanwhile, has only just returned from the groin injury that ruled him out of the World Cup, making his first appearance of the season as White’s replacement at Sunderland. He was left out of the Ipswich squad as a precaution but is now expected to be involved.
Mosquera limped off against Aston Villa in the second game of the season and hasn’t featured since. A return would be a big boost given how thin Arsenal’s defensive options have become.
And finally, Hincapie missed the Ipswich game with a muscular injury despite having trained during the week. His availability tomorrow would give Arteta considerably more flexibility at the back.