Mikel Arteta has played down fears that Bruno Guimaraes is set for an extended spell on the sidelines after the midfielder missed Arsenal's opening Premier League win of the season.
The Gunners began their title defence with a routine 3-0 victory over Coventry. Kai Havertz opened the scoring, Bukayo Saka doubled the lead from close range and Martin Odegaard sealed the win with a scuffed effort shortly after half-time.
It was only the second time since December 2024 that the trio have started together, and they demonstrated what Arsenal had been missing.
Guimaraes ruled out with groin issue
The only negative on the night for Arsenal was that Guimaraes was not fit enough to make the matchday squad. Arteta revealed before the match that the Brazilian was ruled out due to a “slight tension in his groin”.
There had been suggestions that Guimaraes could now be facing a period of weeks on the sidelines, but Arteta was keen to shut that down.
“No, no, no,” he said. “We expect that not to be weeks at all. Let's see how he evolves this week. He didn't even want to stop. He wanted to carry on. Now we start to understand the character of the player, but I don't expect that to be a big issue.”
Tzolis impresses on home debut
Although he did not get on the scoresheet, Christos Tzolis was arguably Arsenal's brightest spark in attack on his competitive home debut. The winger provided the assist for Saka's goal and was a relentless threat running at the Coventry defence in the first half.
Tzolis has now scored or assisted in each of his past 16 competitive appearances at club level and has immediately hit the ground running for Arsenal.
“I love that a player that has been with us just for a few weeks gets this kind of energy every time he's on the ball,” Arteta said. “I think he's earned it. I think the way he has performed in the last few games has been phenomenal. What he transmits as a player is so direct, so incisive, constantly.
“He wants to make things happen and he has an incredible variety of actions in the last 30 metres. I think it's up to him to make the right decisions. Even the spaces are sometimes really, really small. I'm very happy with him.”
