Bruno Guimaraes is pushing to be passed fit for Arsenal’s trip to face Aston Villa on Monday night, Mikel Arteta has confirmed, while Jurrien Timber is progressing well in his recovery from a groin injury.
Guimaraes joined the Gunners from Newcastle earlier this summer and made an immediate impact as he impressed in the Community Shield defeat of Manchester City. He did not feature in the squad for the Premier League curtain-raiser against Coventry, though, due to what Arteta described as a “slight tension in his groin”.
Guimaraes back in training
Speaking after that match, Arteta suggested he could be passed fit in time to face Aston Villa on Monday night: “Let’s see how he evolves this week.” And, speaking as he previewed the trip to Birmingham, Arteta doubled down, confirming Guimaraes is back in training.
“We just managed the last few days with him,” Arteta told assembled reporters. “He's out on the pitch, doing training sessions, but we need to manage the load to get to Monday in the best possible condition to be selected. He's potentially available.”
Konsa available for debut
He also confirmed new signing Ezri Konsa is in line to make his debut against his former club: “He's available. He's trained really well and he will be available for selection.”
Arsenal will also be without William Saliba and Jurrien Timber for the trip to Villa Park, with both defenders nursing longer-term injuries. Timber is struggling with a groin problem which saw him miss much of last season’s run-in and prevented him from representing the Netherlands at the World Cup.
But Arteta says he is closing in on a return to the pitch: “He's progressing really well. He's on the right trajectory, if everything goes well he can probably step it up next week.”
