Mikel Arteta has revealed that Bruno Guimaraes is a doubt to face Coventry on Friday, while Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka are ready to start. Guimaraes, Arsenal's new £75m signing, made his debut for the Gunners when he started their 3-0 win against Manchester City in the Community Shield last Sunday.
However, the Brazil international suffered a knock before being replaced by Rice at half-time. Both Rice and Saka were given additional holiday after England's long campaign at the World Cup, which came off the back of a gruelling season at club level.
Arteta's fitness update
In his pre-match press conference on Thursday, Arteta was asked about Guimaraes and replied: "Let's see how he is. He's evolving really well, but let's see for tomorrow."
There was more positive news on Rice and Saka's fitness, with the Gunners boss saying: "Yes, they're ready to be involved, yes."
Long-term absentees and transfer plans
One man who won't be involved is Jurrien Timber, who remains out after suffering a groin injury prior to the World Cup. Like fellow long-term absentee William Saliba, he won't be seen in the coming games. "No, I said in the next few weeks," Arteta reiterated. "He's not training with the group yet."
Given Arsenal's current lack of depth in the backline, the Gunners are looking to sign a defender before the summer transfer window closes on September 1. Arsenal have agreed a £51m deal with Aston Villa to sign Ezri Konsa, although Arteta was coy when asked about him. "Well, we are really active in the market. I think I mentioned that a few days ago," Arteta said. "The ambition is to improve the squad. We have a really specific issue in the backline, especially with the long-term injury of Wilo [Saliba] and the fact that we miss one more defender; that's clear. So we are trying to reinforce that area. Whenever we're ready, we'll announce something."
He added: "I'm always positive, I'm always confident. It's something that I cannot control. It doesn't depend just on us. So we are willing to improve that area and we're going to try our best to achieve that."
Lewis-Skelly to stay
In addition, Arteta confirmed that Myles Lewis-Skelly will be staying at the Emirates following speculation over his future. The 19-year-old was offered to Manchester United and Chelsea earlier this month, but Arteta declared that Lewis-Skelly will '100 per cent' be an Arsenal player beyond deadline day.
