MY ACCOUNT
Bukayo Saka is set to feature for Arsenal against FC Zurich tonight to allay fears he could miss the World Cup.
A heavy knock saw the forward last just 27 minutes of the Gunners’ 5-0 win over Nottingham Forest last Sunday — with England’s tournament opener against Iran on November 21 fast approaching.
But the Three Lions star, 21, eased concerns of his availability in Qatar by training with his club team-mates this week and is set to be in manager Mikel Arteta’s squad this evening.
Asked if Saka could feature in their final Europa League group game against the Swiss outfit, Arteta said: “Yes.
“Bukayo just missed one or two [training sessions] and he was fine.
“We’re using our brains and our common sense, but obviously he had a kick. He was uncomfortable with it, we made the decision to get him off and now he’s feeling fine.”
The North Londoners missed the chance to seal top spot in Group A last week after a much-changed side fell to a 2-0 defeat at PSV Eindhoven.
It left the Dutch giants only two points behind the Premier League leaders ahead of the final round of group fixtures, meaning defeat at the Emirates could see Arteta’s men slip to second.
While admitting a further juggling of his squad is required with a clash against London rivals Chelsea looming on Sunday, Arteta is determined to ensure his charges get the job done tonight.
The Spanish coach, 40, said: “I don’t approach games thinking that after half an hour or 45 minutes we will get the result that we want, but certainly I will have a really competitive team out there.
“We missed the chance last week and Thursday is the last opportunity to achieve our goal.
“We have been trying to load the players pretty equally over the last five or six weeks, because we have been playing every three days and we have managed to do that.
“You have seen that we haven’t repeated too many blocks of four games for certain individuals and we will try to continue to do that to get everyone as fresh as possible and with enough rhythm heading into the game.”
Focus on club, not World Cup
While the World Cup may be just around the corner, Arteta has urged his side to keep focus on club matters as they look to keep their European campaign on track and stay top of the Premier League.
He added: “I don’t want to notice any of that [World Cup].
“Every day I feel responsibility to protect them, to guide them, to get the best out of them.
“But we are playing for Arsenal at the moment and that’s what they have to focus on.
“When they played for England or their national teams they have to focus on the national team and on England and this is what we have to.”
Team news
Alongside Saka, Arteta is hopeful of having Oleksandr Zinchenko and Mohamed Elneny available at the Emirates with the pair stepping up their returns from respective injuries.
Ukraine international Zinchenko made an impressive start to the season after arriving from Manchester City last summer but has missed Arsenal’s last eight games in all competitions.
Elneny has not featured since August 27 but is also back in training to bolster Arteta’s options.
Arteta added: “They are at different stages. Mo [Elneny] had a long-term injury but he has recovered now in a really good way and has been training with the team for a week or two.
“Alex [Zinchenko] is just very recent and he’s had two training sessions.”
Did you know?
Arsenal’s 2-1 victory over Zurich on Matchday 1 was the pair’s first ever meeting. The Gunners have won all seven of their matches against Swiss clubs.
Conversely, Zurich have lost all five of their away matches against English opposition, conceding three goals per game on average. Their most recent away game against an English club saw them lose 3-0 against Aston Villa in the Intertoto Cup in July 2002.
Arsenal have lost just one of their last 19 group stage matches at home in major European competitions (15 wins, three draws), while they have won each of their last five such games.
Zurich have won only one of their last 17 away games in major European competitions (three draws, 13 defeats), beating AEK Larnaca in this competition back in September 2018.
Arsenal have kept a clean sheet in each of their last three home matches in Europe, their longest run since a five-game stretch between November 2018 and April 2019.
