Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided an injury update on four first-team players ahead of this weekend’s Premier League trip to Nottingham Forest.
The Gunners are seeking to maintain pressure on league leaders Manchester City after returning to winning ways with a 2-1 home victory over Leeds United last weekend.
However, Arteta could be without Piero Hincapie, Martin Zubimendi, Christos Tzolis and William Saliba for the trip to Forest.
Providing an update on Hincapie, the Arsenal manager said the defender was making good progress but would need another week or two before returning.
“Piero is evolving really well. The way he pushes everybody, it’s not going to take long, but he will need another week or two,” Arteta said.
On Zubimendi, Arteta said the midfielder’s condition had improved, adding that a final assessment would be made after the team’s next training session to determine whether he would be available for the Forest match.
“Zubi looks much better. He already looked much better today. We have another session tomorrow and we will assess whether he is available to play against Forest. We have to see how this evolves,” he said.
The manager also offered an encouraging update on Tzolis, revealing that the player had undergone another MRI scan to monitor his recovery.
“Tzolis doing really well. Yesterday he had another MRI scan to see how the injury is evolving. It’s progressing really well. Another one that hopefully we can have back in a few weeks,” Arteta added.
Regarding Saliba, Arteta said another MRI scan was scheduled for the following week to assess the defender’s healing process.
“Again, I think next week we have another MRI with him to see how the healing process is going. But every sign so far has been very, very positive. It will be good to have him,” he said.
Arsenal will continue to monitor the players’ recovery as they prepare for the Nottingham Forest fixture, with Zubimendi’s availability expected to become clearer after further assessment.
