Four players could miss Arsenal vs Everton as Mikel Arteta gives Bukayo Saka update

· FootballLondon

Arsenal are set to be without Bukayo Saka for their Premier League clash against Everton, with Mikel Arteta giving an update on the winger's thigh injury after the draw against Bayern Munich

Arsenal face Everton in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon, with Mikel Arteta giving the latest update on the fitness of his squad. The main concern is Bukayo Saka, with the winger set to miss the game.

Saka picked up a thigh injury during Arsenal's 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday night. He was forced off the pitch in the early stages of that game.

How long he may be out for is still to be seen, but it's a situation that Mikel Arteta will have to deal with as games start to come thick and fast. It starts with that match against the Toffees at the Emirates Stadium.

Prior to the fixture, here's the current situation on the injury front from both camps.

Arsenal

The primary concern for Arsenal is the injury to Saka. Providing an update in his pre-match press conference, Arteta said: "He's got another MRI this afternoon because he had quite a lot of fluid in the area so it was difficult to understand the extent of the injury. We will know more probably tomorrow."

He added: "Again we need a few more scans and opinions from the specialists. Obviously when a player has to walk off the pitch, he is struggling to walk without any pain, he's restricted to movement, they are not good signs. Let's be a little bit patient so we can gave a definitive assessment and then let you know."

Saka will be joined by longer-term casualty William Saliba amongst those unavailable. The defender continues his rehabilitation from a back problem, targeting a comeback at some point next month.

Winger Christos Tzolis also remains unavailable for the fixture against Everton. He sustained an injury while representing Greece during the international break.

Providing an update last week, Arteta said: "He's doing really well. Yesterday he had another MRI scan to see how the injury is evolving. It's progressing really well, so he's another one who hopefully we can have back in a few weeks."

One player who might potentially return for Arsenal is defender Piero Hincapie. The Ecuadorian returned to training ahead of the fixture against Bayern Munich.

Arteta has since confirmed his availability for the match against Everton. “Piero, he's trained with us and is available for tomorrow as well," he said.

Everton

In contrast to Arsenal, Everton have no definite absentees for the encounter. There is however a concern over defender Jarrad Branthwaite who was involved in a collision with Emiliano Martinez during the match against Chelsea.

In his pre-match press conference, David Moyes says that Everton have 'bits and pieces' in terms of injuries, but wouldn't be drawn on any specifics. He also remained tight-lipped when asked about Branthwaite specifically.

Full-back Vitalii Mykolenko had been absent from the Premier League meeting with Hull City, but returned to the starting line-up last weekend and completed the full 90 minutes against Chelsea.

Last week, David Moyes revealed that former Arsenal midfielder Christian Norgaard is yet to reach full match fitness, having missed the beginning of the campaign.

> "Christian's still got a bit to go," he said. "A wee bit to go. I think we could use him at certain times if required, but I don't know if he's ready to start the game yet."

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