Arsenal suffer double injury blow - but Mikel Arteta gets good news on three stars
Mikel Arteta delivered mixed news on Arsenal's injury status as he provided an update on William Saliba, Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori ahead of Brighton
Arsenal are set to be without William Saliba and Gabriel Martinelli for their Carabao Cup clash against Brighton but Mikel Arteta was able to deliver more positive news on Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori.
Gunners boss Arteta was required to substitute Saliba, Rice and Calafiori in the win over Crystal Palace due to injuries, with Martinelli also proving to be a concern. Saliba was replaced by Cristhian Mosquera at half-time of the clash before Rice went down injured and required treatment in the closing stages.
Assessments are ongoing for Saliba and Martinelli, but neither is expected to be fit against the Seagulls. Arteta said: “[Saliba] is out. We are assessing him, but he won’t be involved this match.
“[Martinelli] looks as well that he is going to be out. We have to, again, do some more tests and see the extent of the injury. But this game is going to be too early for him.”
Asked about Saka, who played at the weekend after suffering from illness, Rice and Calafiori, Arteta confirmed the group were 'fine' and 'available'.
READ MORE: Declan Rice next to be called for crunch Arsenal meeting after Bukayo Saka talksREAD MORE: Injured Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz await crucial Mikel Arteta call ahead of returnsArteta also opened up on the condition of Ben White after the defender suffered a setback in his recovery. "He had a setback and that hasn't helped," he said.
"It was an injury that kept him out for a few weeks and we had to manage his load. The reason why he's not been playing is to manage that; he's in a good place now, he's been training more recently and his feeling has been very good.
"When Ben is at the level that he can show, he's a top player for us, a player that drives the team in a different way, gives us a different threat on that flank as well, and we need him at his best."
The Spaniard is expected to rotate his team as the north London side look to progress past Brighton. Arteta plans to manage the load of his squad ahead of a busy period.
The coach said: "We're going to try to manage the minutes and the loads as best we can because, as you say, we have a lot of games coming up with a very short recovery time, which is a bit unusual, but we're going to remain very competitive."
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