Arsenal are still assessing Bukayo Saka's injury, with Mikel Arteta unable to give a timeline for his return after the England winger was forced off with a quad problem in Wednesday's 2-2 Champions League draw with Bayern Munich.
Saka went down early in the match after playing a pass under no real pressure and had to be replaced immediately. Arteta admitted afterwards that the issue "doesn't look good at all". The winger was later seen limping out of the Allianz Arena, though he was walking unaided and without crutches.
Further scans needed for Saka
Arsenal sent Saka for scans on Thursday, but more investigations are required before the extent of his absence is known. Speaking at his pre-Everton press conference on Friday, 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 tomorrow."
"We need a few more scans and opinions from the specialists. When a player is struggling to walk without any pain, he's restricted in movement, they are not good signs. Let's be a little bit patient so we can gave a definitive assessment."
Saka's absence is a major blow for Arsenal. Since the 2020/21 season, the Gunners have a win rate of 64.2 per cent in the Premier League when he plays, compared to 53.3 per cent when he does not. Arteta is already short of wingers, with Christos Tzolis still out and Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard sold in the summer. Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze are set to be relied upon in the coming weeks, while Max Dowman should also get opportunities.
Hincapie returns for Everton clash
In more positive news for Arsenal, Piero Hincapie will return from an ankle injury to face Everton on Saturday. The defender has missed the last three matches after picking up the issue on the Emirates Stadium pitch during a training session held immediately after the win over Leeds last month.
Hincapie returned to the grass earlier this week and went through individual training drills on Tuesday. He trained again on Friday and will be available this weekend. "He trained with us and is available for tomorrow," Arteta confirmed.
The game will come too soon for Tzolis in his recovery from a hamstring injury suffered while playing for Greece earlier this month, but he is understood to be close to a return. William Saliba is also making good progress in his recovery from a serious back injury sustained at the World Cup that has prevented him from playing at all so far this season, but he is not in contention to feature yet.
