Declan Rice makes injury decision ahead of Arsenal's clash with Chelsea after breaking toe

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has been included in England’s squad to face Greece and Republic of Ireland and there is optimism he will also be able to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge - despite breaking his toe

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice is ready to play through the pain barrier to face Chelsea on Sunday after being absent for the club's 1-0 defeat to Inter Milan.

Rice suffered a broken toe in Arsenal's defeat at Newcastle last weekend which ruled him out of their Champions League defeat the San Siro.

But the Arsenal midfielder has been included in England’s squad to face Greece and Republic of Ireland and there is optimism he will also be able to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Rice even struggled to put a boot on earlier this week and could not train properly but players do play with broken toes and Arsenal are hopeful that it will not stop their key man from playing in Sunday’s London derby.

Gunners boss Mikel Arteta needs Rice to face Chelsea as the club’s season is on the line as they have fallen seven points behind the title race and they suffered a third defeat in six games with the defeat Inter.

Rice has admitted he was left jaded after a busy summer with the Euros and could do with a break but England also want him to play in their final two Nations League fixtures.

Speaking about Rice's injury before the Inter defeat, Arteta said: "Declan unfortunately picked up an injury against Newcastle. It is a knock, a problem on his foot, and he wasn't comfortable to put his boots on so at the moment he is not fit. He wasn't feeling good the last few days. We'll have to assess him on Thursday and see if he's ready for Chelsea."

Former Chelsea striker Kai Havertz has also declared himself fit to play at Chelsea on Sunday. Havertz came off with a bad head wound at Inter after a clash of heads at Inter but he did not suffer concussion and has also told medics that he has not suffered any lingering effects.

Meanwhile, Arsenal are prepared to be patient in their search for a replacement for sporting director Edu who is leaving the club to join Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis’s stable of clubs in a more senior role.

Edu will now serve his six-month notice period on gardening leave while his current deputy Jason Ayto will step up as interim sporting director in the meantime. Ayto is incredibly highly thought of and respected at Arsenal and has had a huge input during Edu’s time.

Arsenal’s hierarchy are set to fly out to Los Angeles next week for meetings with owners Stan and Josh Kroenke to discuss their next move.

But they are likely to use an external agency to oversee the recruitment and they are likely to make an outside appointment with current managing director Rich Garlick vastly experienced in recruiting sporting directors having worked with and appointed the likes of Dan Ashworth.

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