Mikel Arteta has made the clearest statement yet that Bukayo Saka would not be playing for Arsenal against Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday. Saka missed Arsenal’s past two games, which included a tight victory over Shakhtar Donetsk in Europe and a league loss at Bournemouth. For the two matches, the Gunners were without several additional first-team players, such as defender Jurrien Timber and Captain Martin Odegaard.
After receiving a red card at the Vitality Stadium, William Saliba will be suspended for the match against Liverpool. Manager Arteta will be hoping to see at least one player return. His remarks following the Shakhtar victory, however, suggest that Saka’s chances are poor given his injury sustained while playing for his country. Arteta told Amazon following the 1-0 victory, “Saka isn’t training yet, so he won’t be available, and Ricci [Calafiori] felt something and couldn’t stay on.” “Bit of a worry.”
Mikel Arteta drops double Arsenal injury bombshell
The Gunners still have a few days before Liverpool visits, so Arteta had been a little cagier before the game. On the other hand, the Calafiori situation raises new issues. More than fifteen minutes before the conclusion, the Italian defender was forced to make way for youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly after attempting to continue after being hurt.
Timber, Kieran Tierney, and Takehiro Tomiyasu were all forced to miss duty due to injuries; therefore, Lewis-Skelly was called into action. Shakhtar goalie Dmytro Riznyk’s terrible own goal gave Arsenal the victory, but Riznyk also stopped a penalty kick from Leandro Trossard.
