Mikel Arteta says he is ‘confident’ Bukayo Saka will be available for the match with West Brom but remained coy on Sead Kolasinac’s future.
Saka to be available
The Arsenal fan base held a collective breath when Bukayo Saka was seemingly injured in a collision in the 1-0 win against Brighton on Tuesday evening. The England international continued on after taking the knock to his ankle, but was soon substituted for Dani Ceballos after failing to be able to continue.
The 19-year-old looked in good spirits on the bench and was pictured laughing despite having to come off with his affliction, but there were lingering doubts as to whether he would be available for Arsenal’s next match against West Brom.
Mikel Arteta confirmed in his press conference ahead of the match with the Birmingham-based club, that Saka could be available for the game.
“I hope he is available, we will see today if he is training or not. He has played a lot of minutes as well. I am confident he will be okay for the game,” said Arteta
It has been the likes of Saka and the other young players such as Emile Smith-Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli that have dragged this Arsenal side out of a desperate mire.
“Yes, but that should be a given by any player, that they are always trying to earn and get better,” Arteta said when asked if Saka is desperate to keep learning. “For me the biggest thing he has done in the last few months is the personality he plays with and the responsibility he takes in the decision he is willing to take when things are not going well, and the impact he has had for the team to get results. At that age, it is not common at all.”
BRIGHTON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 29: Alexandre Lacazette of Arsenal celebrates with teammate Bukayo Saka after scoring his team’s first goal during the Premier League match between Brighton & Hove Albion and Arsenal at American Express Community Stadium on December 29, 2020 in Brighton, England. The match will be played without fans, behind closed doors as a Covid-19 precaution. (Photo by Frank Augstein – Pool/Getty Images)
“But that is his nature, and he wants to evolve that – you could see that his team-mates trust him and want to give him that responsibility, and that’s great because then you don’t have one or two players, you have more players. He is a great example as well, for any young player to play with that commitment, that passion, and that courage, when you play for a big team.”
If the young England international is not available for the match against West Brom, Arteta will have plenty of options to replace him with. Nicolas Pepe still waiting for regular game time.
Arteta coy on Kolasinac exit
Reports emanating from Germany revealed that Schalke are in the final stages of agreeing a deal with Arsenal to sign Bosnian international Sead Kolasinac on loan until the end of the season.
— Sky Sport (@SkySportDE) December 30, 2020
Arteta was of course asked about the prospect of the left-back leaving the club but remained very cautious in answering the question and revealing very little about the situation.
“I cannot confirm anything yet. We are working on a couple of things and obviously the window is going to bring a lot of news. Some are true, some are not. Whenever we have something to say, we will announce it,” he said.
“We’ve had some conversations around a few players and whether we can find some loans because the numbers we have in the squad at the moment are really big. Again, we cannot confirm anything yet.”
Arsenal do have a squad which is too big and led to the exile of both Mesut Ozil and Sokratis from the Premier League and Europa League squads. Arsenal will clearly look to do business in regards to outgoings but could also see the club push for a possible incoming to strengthen their squad should Arteta feel he needs it.
Sead Kolasinac is close to leaving on loan to Schalke in the first of many for Arsenal this January
Arsenal boss Arteta confirms Willian injury/Provides Saka update
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Premier League table
# | Team | MP | D | P |
1 | Liverpool FC | 15 | 17 | 32 |
2 | Manchester United FC | 15 | 8 | 30 |
3 | Leicester City FC | 16 | 9 | 29 |
4 | Everton FC | 15 | 7 | 29 |
5 | Aston Villa FC | 14 | 14 | 26 |
6 | Chelsea FC | 16 | 13 | 26 |
7 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 15 | 11 | 26 |
8 | Manchester City FC | 14 | 9 | 26 |
9 | Southampton FC | 16 | 6 | 26 |
10 | West Ham United FC | 16 | 2 | 23 |
11 | Leeds United | 16 | 0 | 23 |
12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 16 | -6 | 21 |
13 | Arsenal FC | 16 | -3 | 20 |
14 | Crystal Palace FC | 16 | -9 | 19 |
15 | Newcastle United FC | 14 | -7 | 18 |
16 | Burnley FC | 15 | -11 | 16 |
17 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 16 | -7 | 13 |
18 | Fulham FC | 15 | -10 | 11 |
19 | West Bromwich Albion | 16 | -24 | 8 |
20 | Sheffield United FC | 16 | -19 | 2 |
Player | Team | Goals |
---|---|---|
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 11 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 11 |
Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 11 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 10 |
Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 10 |
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 9 |
Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 8 |
Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 8 |
Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 7 |
Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 6 |
Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 6 |
Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 6 |
Abraham, Tammy | Chelsea FC | 6 |
Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 5 |
Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 5 |
Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 5 |
Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 5 |
El Ghazi, Anwar | Aston Villa FC | 5 |
Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
---|---|---|---|
Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 5 |
Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 5 |
Cash, Matty | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 5 |
Dunk, Lewis | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 4 |
Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 4 |
Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 4 |
Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 4 |
Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 5 |
Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 4 |
Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 0 | 4 |
Klich, Mateusz | Leeds United | 0 | 4 |
McGinn, John | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 4 |
Reid, Bobby | Fulham FC | 0 | 4 |
Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 4 |
Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 3 |
Berge, Sander | Sheffield United FC | 0 | 4 |
Phillips, Kalvin | Leeds United | 0 | 4 |
Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 4 |
Mendy, Nampalys | Leicester City FC | 0 | 4 |
Player | Team | Assists |
---|---|---|
Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 10 |
Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 7 |
Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 6 |
De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 6 |
Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 4 |
Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 4 |
Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 4 |
Adams, Che | Southampton FC | 4 |
Harrison, Jack | Leeds United | 4 |
Chilwell, Benjamin | Chelsea FC | 4 |
McGinn, John | Aston Villa FC | 4 |
Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 4 |
Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 4 |
Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 3 |
Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 3 |
Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 3 |
Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 3 |
Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 3 |
Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 3 |
Source: 101greatgoals.com