Arsenal visits Nottingham Forest on Saturday, in a matchup of 1st vs 17th, which should actually be much closer than it sounds on paper. They call them the Tricky Trees for a reason. However, the Gunners are on a Premier League title chase right now, and not letting up, in any match, in any competition. They’re top of the table in both the EPL and the Champions League right now. For this weekend’s match, they have four injury absentees: Max Dowman, Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapie.
Let’s take a look at the nature of their injury issues, and what their recovery timelines might be.
Arsenal at Nottingham Forest FYIs
Kickoff: Sat. Jan. 17, 2026, 5:30pm UK, City Ground, West Bridgford, UK
Google Result Probability: Arsenal 63% Draw `22% Nottingham Forest 15%
PL Position, Form Guide: Arsenal 1st, 49 pts WWWWD Nottingham Forest 17th, 21 pts LLLLW
Arsenal Team News
Cristhian Mosquera (ankle)
He recently suffered a setback in his recovery, and is now looking at a mid-February return to action.
Said Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta a couple days ago: “Evolving really well, but they’re not training yet, so they’re still a few weeks away.”
Max Dowman (ankle)
‘Very similar to Mosquera,” said Arteta on Tuesday. “Very similar injury, very similar time frames, and both evolving really well, but they’re not training yet, so they’re still a few weeks away.”
Riccardo Calafiori (muscular injury)
The Italian defender has missed the last six matches, due to an injury that the club has not been disclosing specifics of (what else is new? LOL!)
“He is progressing, but we don’t know,” Arteta said. “I think it will be a matter of a few weeks, probably.”
Piero Hincapie (thigh)
Mum’s been the word on his situation, ever since he was forced off early in the draw with Liverpool. Said Arteta in his prematch presser ahead of last night’s EFL Cup win over Chelsea: “We don’t know [how long] yet.”
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, RG.org and Ratings.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.