Mikel Arteta faces a key few days as Bukayo Saka works his way towards fitness. The 23-year-old hasn’t played for over two weeks – for club or country – after picking up a knock while away with England.
In the meantime, he has missed three games. Firstly, having come off at 1-0 down to Greece for Lee Carsley’s Three Lions during October’s international break, he was then absent for the 3-1 win over Finland days later.
Saka returned to the Sobha Realty Training Complex with a hamstring issue to be assessed. Despite a full week of preparations, rest and recovery, he did not feature against AFC Bournemouth that weekend.
To Arteta’s despair, Saka was also unavailable when Shakhtar Donetsk visited north London on Tuesday night. The days are now counting down to Arsenal’s crucial Premier League game against title rivals Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon (4.30pm).
Speaking on Friday, Mikel Arteta was coy on just how likely Saka and his injured teammates are to feature against Liverpool. Both Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori are also doubts.
