Huge Bukayo Saka blow confirmed for Arsenal as two senior players miss Bournemouth
The Gunners are set to be without key players for their Premier League clash at the Vitality Stadium
by Kaya Kaynak · football.londonBukayo Saka will miss Arsenal's Premier League clash with Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.
The 23-year-old came off with a hamstring injury during England's 2-1 defeat to Greece over the international break. The problem forced him to miss the subsequent Nations League clash with Finland, but Mikel Arteta had implied that he had a decent chance of making the trip down to the south coast.
"It’s not a serious injury," the Spaniard said in his pre-match press conference. "He’s evolving really well. He’s done a few things in the last few days when he came back from the national team after the second game. We are hopeful. We have a training session this afternoon and he did some bits yesterday, so let’s see if he can make it on time."
Saka though, did not travel with the rest of the Arsenal squad to the Vitality Stadium. The England international still remains in contention to feature on Tuesday against Shakhtar Donetsk however.
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Jurrien Timber is also missing from the Gunners group for the trip to the south coast. The Dutch international has been absent since coming off at half time during the 2-0 win over PSG prior to the international break.
Kai Havertz, Thomas Partey and Ben White are all fit for the game despite availability concerns. The trio are in Arteta's starting line up.
Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Martinelli are all also available after struggling with respective calf problems. The pair are among the substitutes however. Goalkeeper Tommy Setford is also on the bench after returning from a hip injury, with Neto ineligible to play against his parent club.
Mikel Merino meanwhile makes his first start for Arsenal in midfield. Raheem Sterling also starts on the left wing. Gabriel Magalhaes is captain of the Gunners for the first time from the start in a competitive fixture.
Arsenal starting XI vs Bournemouth: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Partey, Merino, Rice; Sterling, Havertz, Trossard.
Arsenal subs: Setford, Zinchenko, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly, Jorginho, Nwaneri, Kabi, Martinelli, Jesus.
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