Mikel Arteta could have up to seven Arsenal players absent through injury for Sunday’s Premier League clash away at Chelsea. The Gunners are in the midst of a difficult spell with defeat to Inter Milan in the Champions League earlier this week making it just two wins from their last six games in all competitions.
Injuries have certainly played a role in that with Bukayo Saka, Jurrien Timber and Martin Odegaard all having missed action. The trio have since returned, but Arteta has been dealt fresh concerns with three players doubtful to feature at Stamford Bridge.
Declan Rice missed out entirely from the matchday squad against Inter, while Mikel Merino and Kai Havertz picked up head injuries with both players later subbed off. With that said, football.london takes a look at the latest Arsenal injury news before the London derby against the Blues.
Kai Havertz
Injury: Head
Late into the clash against Inter, Kai Havertz collided heads with Yann Bisseck which resulted in both players requiring treatment. A significant amount of blood could be seen around Havertz’s head with it ultimately decided he would be replaced by the returning Odegaard.
He has since been called up to the Germany squad, suggesting his injury is not serious.
What Arteta said: “Kai he has a big cut. He had to come off because he needed some stitches. Hopefully he will be OK for the weekend.”
Possible return date: Chelsea (A) – Sunday, November 10.
Declan Rice
Injury: Unknown.
Despite completing 90 minutes at the weekend against Newcastle, Rice was absent from training at the Sobha Realty Complex on Tuesday morning. He was not part of the travelling party to Milan either. It has since been revealed that Rice broke his toe in the defeat at Newcastle, but is desperate to be available for the Chelsea game.
He has also been confirmed in England’s squad for the upcoming Nations League fixtures, but it remains to be seen if he will actually feature.
What Arteta said : “Declan unfortunately picked an injury against Newcastle. He was able to finish and 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.”
Possible return date: Chelsea (A) – Sunday, November 10.
Riccardo Calafiori
Injury: Knee.
Calafiori was forced off during the Champions League clash at home to Shakhtar Donetsk after slipping in a challenge. Reports in Italy suggested that he will only be out for several weeks. The issue is not described as being serious.
What Arteta has said: “He will be out for a few weeks, I would say.”
Possible return date: Nottingham Forest (H) – Saturday, November 23.
Martin Odegaard
Injury: Ankle.
Odegaard finally made the leap into returning to team training after two months out. He was part of the group doing preparations at an open session on Tuesday morning.
The Gunners captain travelled to Italy for the game, but was left out of Norway’s squad for the next international break. He came on for the final few minutes against Inter.
What Arteta has said: “Martin it’s great to have him back. He trained with us [for the] first time today. He’s a bit earlier than expected. But it’s great to have him here and we will decide if we [will] use him tomorrow.”
Possible return date: Returned.
Mikel Merino
Injury: Head.
Gabriel Jesus replaced Mikel Merino for the second half of the Champions League clash against Inter Milan. The midfielder endured a busy first 45 minutes which included being at the centre of two penalty decisions. The first saw Yann Sommer not punished for seemingly punching the midfielder in the head instead of the ball.
Later in the half, he was penalised for handling a Mehdi Taremi flick that allowed Calhanoglu to convert from the penalty spot. All of this happened after he was booked which could have been the main reason for his withdrawal, though a head injury is possible.
What Arteta said: “No, he was not concussed. Yesterday and today he was already not feeling great and when I looked at that I decided to take him off because I need him 100%.”
Possible return date: Chelsea (A) – Sunday, November 10.
Takehiro Tomiyasu
Injury: Unknown.
Tomiyasu was again absent from the matchday squad against Preston North End last week after missing games against Shakhtar Donetsk, Liverpool and Bournemouth prior. The 25-year-old has struggled with injury for most of the calendar year, playing only six minutes of football since the 2024/25 season began.
What Arteta has said: “No, I don’t expect him to be available before then [the November international break], unfortunately.”
Possible return date : December.
Kieran Tierney
Injury: Hamstring.
Tierney remains out of action after suffering a devastating hamstring injury playing for Scotland against Switzerland during the Euro 2024 group stages in Cologne over the summer. This stopped what seemed to be a transfer plan in its tracks, as the defender was expected to leave the Emirates Stadium having spent last season on loan to Real Sociedad.
He is finally closing in on being back in training. There has been no sight of him just yet, though.
What Arteta has said: “I think he’s quite close. He’s looking really good. I think he’s over the period where he was still struggling, so he looks really sharp out there. He hasn’t trained with the team yet but hopefully, he can do that in the next week or two.”
Possible return date: West Ham (A) – Saturday, November 30.
