My Arsenal Blog

Speaking to the press ahead of Arsenal’s encounter with Norwich City on Saturday, manager Mikel Arteta said he wasn’t looking for any excuses for the poor results of the first three Premier League rounds, but he is looking forward to having some players, previously absent, available for selection.

“Well, I’m really looking forward to having everybody available and trying to start the season the way we want,” Arteta said.

“We don’t want to use any excuses. We know how difficult the start was, with injuries, with a lot of COVID issues that we had, and with difficult games we had to play. We have to reset now, and hopefully get everybody back on track, and start winning football games, which is what we have to do.”  .......Read more here.....

Nothing seems to be going Granit Xhaka’s way at the moment. The Switzerland captain was sent off in Arsenal’s 5-0 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday, and now he’s tested positive for COVID-19 while on international duty for the World Cup qualifiers, the Swiss FA have officially confirmed.

Switzerland beat Greece in a friendly match on Wednesday, but the Arsenal midfielder took no part in it. He was diagnosed with symptoms of the notorious virus on the morning of the match, and a subsequent PCR yielded a positive result. He is currently in isolation and a huge doubt for his country’s qualifier against Italy on Sunday. After that, Switzerland will face Northern Ireland next Wednesday.  .......Read more here.....

Thomas Partey suffered a huge injury blow in the pre-season friendly against Chelsea on Sunday, leaving the pitch after only 30 minutes of the match which was a part of the ‘Mind Series’ tournament. And as reported by Charles Watts for Goal.com, the midfielder will be out of action for several weeks, which effectively rules him out of the Premier League opener against newly promoted Brentford next week.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal.com has provided fans with some updated team news heading into what many consider to be a crucial game against Everton on Friday night. We all know the European Super League debacle has now fizzled out in the most extraordinary way imaginable, but the focus needs to shift back onto a top six finish – if it’s even possible.

The club knows how important the Europa League is going to be between now and the end of the season, but relying solely on that to get Mikel Arteta’s men back into Europe would be a huge mistake.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal are fearful that the injury picked up by Kieran Tierney just before halftime of the disappointing defeat at the hands of Liverpool on Saturday could keep him out of action for several weeks, according to Charles Watts of Goal.com.  .......Read more here.....

Liverpool are still the reigning Premier League champions, and by no means are they an easy opponent at any given moment despite having their first three centre-backs ruled out for the season, together with their captain. There is much quality in that team even so, and getting outplayed by them is no tragedy. Nonetheless, the overwhelming feeling after the 0-3 defeat at the Emirates on Saturday is disappointment.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal manager Mikel Artera was probably extremely worried at halftime of Norway’s expected victory over Gibraltar at the start of the World Cup qualifications on Wednesday evening when Martin Odegaard was subbed off due to an apparent ankle problem. It really didn’t look good at the time; he was banging his fist on the turf when the injury happened.

Arsenal have a very important Premier League showdown with Liverpool coming up after the international break, and having the brilliant young attacking midfielder available for the champions’ visit at the Emirates is of vital significance. It didn’t look good.  .......Read more here.....

Bukayo Saka has been ruled out of England’s first game of the 2022 World Cup qualifications against San Marino on Thursday, according to multiple reports.

The winger played 74 minutes against West Ham on Sunday, but he’s currently having his hamstring problem checked back at the club and could join Gareth Southgate’s squad for the remaining two matches of this international break, against Albania on Sunday and against Poland next Wednesday.  .......Read more here.....

Arsenal have had a number of players absent from the last couple of fixtures, and here’s the official verdict when it comes to some of them being involved when the Gunners face Leeds United on Sunday.

Goalkeeper Bernd Leno was sent off for a, for a lack of a better word, foolish moment when he handled the ball outside the penalty area in the 2-1 defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers on February 2nd. He has now served his one-match suspension – the 1-0 defeat away to Aston Villa on Saturday last, which means he is available for Sunday.  .......Read more here.....

The injury Thomas Partey suffered in Arsenal’s defeat to Aston Villa on Saturday is not serious and he could be back in contention by the time the Gunners face Leeds United at the Emirates on Sunday, multiple sources have reported.

The midfielder was forced off the pitch at Villa Park with a muscle issue in the 74th minute, causing another worry for manager Mikel Arteta.

“I don’t know, he had a muscular issue so we had to take him off,” the boss said after the game.  .......Read more here.....