Arsenal vs Chelsea: Injury Updates Ahead of London Derby
Mikel Arteta will send out an unbeaten Arsenal against an equally perfect Chelsea on Sunday, and he does so with his injury picture finally starting to clear.
The Arsenal manager moved to calm fears over Cristhian Mosquera, insisting the defender’s hamstring problem in the 1-0 win at Aston Villa was largely precautionary. Mosquera started at Villa Park but was replaced by Ezri Konsa after feeling discomfort.
“He was more a precaution than anything else, so we'll have to see tomorrow in the session how he feels,” Arteta said ahead of the London derby at the Emirates Stadium, with the Spaniard still being assessed.
Timber edging back
The more eye-catching update came at full-back. Jurrien Timber, who has not played a minute this season after a minor groin procedure in the summer, is edging closer to a return that would significantly strengthen Arsenal’s options.
Timber was spotted in light training on Thursday at London Colney. Arteta revealed the Dutchman is now in contention, albeit an outside one, to make the squad against Chelsea.
“Yeah, he's in really good condition at the moment,” Arteta explained. “As I said, he's been now a few weeks on the pitch and he's been training with us now, so he's in a good place.”
Guimaraes a doubt
Not all the news was positive. There is concern over Bruno Guimaraes after the Brazilian picked up another knock in the win at Villa. He had already missed the opening 3-0 victory over Coventry City, having suffered a problem in the Community Shield rout of Manchester City.
“Yeah, he had a knock against Villa in the previous game and he's been assessed. Hopefully tomorrow he will be okay for training,” Arteta said.
Neither Mosquera nor Guimaraes were seen in the latest training images from London Colney, underlining the race against time for both to be involved on Sunday.
Saliba decision offers hope
At centre-back, there was a quieter but significant development. William Saliba has been named in Arsenal’s 25-man Premier League squad and in their Champions League squad, a clear indication the club expect him back before January, when lists are resubmitted.
The Frenchman continues to rest a serious back issue sustained at the World Cup. Arteta admitted the exact timeline remains uncertain.
“Yes, we don't really know the amount of weeks he's going to be out because it's about a healing process in the beginning, it's a bit different,” he said. “We know that we have to respect certain timings. The progression has been really positive in the last few weeks, but we need to wait and see how that one reaction will start to put a lot into it.”
Perfect records on the line
Arsenal and Chelsea arrive at the Emirates as two of only four Premier League sides to have won both of their opening fixtures. The rivalry already burned fiercely last season, when they met four times across all competitions. Arsenal dominated that series, winning three and drawing the other.
Now both sides put flawless starts on the line, with Arteta hoping his walking wounded clear the final hurdle in time for one of the season’s early measuring-stick games.
