The next Premier League weekend commences in just a matter of hours, and it’ll conclude with a Monday night fixture- Arsenal FC and Sheffield United. Gunners boss Mikel Arteta provided updates to the media on the following foursome of injured players earlier today: Thomas Partey, Gabriel Jesus, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Let’s start with Jesus missed the first six weeks of this season after undergoing a minor knee operation.
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He also missed a big chunk of last season, after undergoing surgery to repair a serious knee injury that he suffered while with Brazil at the World Cup in Qatar last winter. He’s missed time of late, with the knee issue rearing its head again. According to Arteta, Jesus is now match fit, but he will only be eased back into the rotation, and won’t log major minutes against the Blades.
“He’s fit enough, but knowing how long he will last is something different probably, but we didn’t want to take any risks after the result that we had against Newcastle,” the Spaniard said of the Brazilian striker.
“Obviously we need him fit. He’s a massive player for us and we want to make sure that now we load the players in the right way.”
Maybe makes a cameo here. Elsewhere Thomas Partey will be back in the squad while Zinchenko and Tomiyasu face late fitness tests.
“Thomas had a session before the last game and now he’s done two consecutive sessions so he should be part of the squad on Monday,” Arteta added
“[Zinchenko and Tomiyasu] are possible but we have to wait and see, especially with the last two sessions that we have on Saturday and Sunday. If that’s the case, they might be available on Monday.”
Also, Jurrien Timber remains out, but there is still hope he will feature before the season is done.
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 Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Twitter.