Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has remained silent on Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard, Eddie Nketiah, and Kieran Tierney’s fitness for Thursday’s Europa League last-16 first leg against Sporting Lisbon.
Jesus was the only member of the quartet to train with the club on Wednesday before the Gunners’ departure, but he is still recovering slowly after knee surgery.
Trossard and Nketiah are both dealing with groin and ankle issues, respectively, while Tierney is said to have been ill with Fabio Vieira.
In his pre-game press conference, Arteta only confirmed that Vieira was fit enough to travel back to his homeland. He remained tight-lipped on the fitness of the other three players.
“News on the squad will be tomorrow. We have brought a few players and you will see tomorrow who is available,” football.london quotes Arteta as saying.
“Let’s see how they evolve. Obviously we’ve had a few issues in the last few days and I am trying to accommodate everybody and get everyone in the best possible condition for tomorrow.”
However, the Spaniard stated that he was not willing to rush Jesus back into action, and that the striker may just continue to work on his fitness while in Portugal.
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Tierney could maintain his 100% run with the first squad in the 2022-23 Europa League if he recovers from his viral infection in time to play on Thursday night.
The Scotland international has been second fiddle to Oleksandr Zinchenko in the Premier League this season, and he is expected to leave in the summer if his playing status does not improve.
Tierney faces missing the second leg if he is booked on Thursday night, while Sporting also has a suspension to consider in the form of key midfielder Manuel Ugarte.
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