Calafiori, Odegaard, Timber, Saka updates: Six Arsenal stars may miss Liverpool
Arsenal may be without up to six first-team players due to injury for their crucial Premier League match against Liverpool on Sunday (October 27), sources have informed Football Insider.
Riccardo Calafiori, 22, is the latest to have been sidelined after twisting his knee while slipping on the turf in his team’s 1-0 Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday (October 22).
The full extent of the injury is still unclear, but the left-back has a history of severe knee issues, having ruptured all the ligaments in his right knee during his youth at Roma.
Following the win over Shakhtar, Mikel Arteta told Amazon Prime, “He felt something. He could not continue playing. So, (it is a) bit of a worry.”
Arteta’s side are also set to be without winger Bukayo Saka, who limped off while on international duty with England and missed their last two games against Bournemouth and Shakhtar with a hamstring injury.
Arsenal injury crisis worsens ahead of Liverpool clash
Captain Martin Odegaard hasn’t featured for Arsenal since their 1-1 Premier League draw with Brighton at the end of August after suffering a serious ankle injury while on international duty with Norway.
Odegaard has claimed that he is “getting closer” and Arteta expects the midfielder to return to the fold ahead of the next international break in November.
Left-back Jurrien Timber’s short Arsenal career has been plagued by injury issues, missing all of last season with an ACL tear and their last three games with a muscle problem.
He is the most likely of Arsenal’s senior absentees to feature against Liverpool, although he remains a doubt.
Ahead of their Champions League clash with Shakhtar, Arteta said “It is going to be close. We have to see how he (Timber) deals with training with the whole group. But he is pretty close.”
After making his long-awaited comeback from a calf injury as a late substitute in Arsenal’s 3-1 win over Southampton, Takehiro Tomiyasu has suffered another setback with his return date unknown.
Kieran Tierney hasn’t played since being stretchered off with a serious hamstring injury in Scotland’s EURO 2024 group game against Switzerland and it remains unclear when he will make his return.
In other news, Arsenal to promote academy stars to first XI amid ‘crisis’ fears.
For more Arsenal news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.