Arsenal will look to get back to winning ways when they take on Southampton on Thursday and the club have issued an update in regards to the latest team news.
The North London club are currently in 10th place while the Saints are three points behind in 14th place. The Emirates club are struggling after suffering embarrassing defeats at the hands of City and Brighton, and will look to regain some ground against the Saints.
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The big development coming out of the Brighton game was the injury suffered by goalkeeper Bernd Leno, but the club have given fans some good news as they revealed the German keeper will be back to full training in four to six weeks.
Speaking to Arsenal’s official website, manager Mikel Arteta said:
“Well we thought it was going to be a more significant injury. He was more positive and, in less pain, today so that’s good news.”
Other significant team news, the most significant information was that youngster Gabriel Martinelli could be out for the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury.
Pablo Mari who suffered an ankle sprain against Manchester City will be out for two to three months. There was however a silver lining as the Gunners have Cedric, Sokratis and Granit Xhaka back in full training, while Lucas Torreira is expected to return in 2-3 weeks.
Having a few players back in full training will be a real boost for Arteta as he looks to finish the season on a strong note. Losing to Manchester City and Brighton in consecutive games has derailed the push for the Champions League, but there is still a very small, outside chance.
However, the club will have to depend more on the results of other teams, now in addition to taking care of their own business.
The injury to Martinelli is quite possibly the one that will affect Arteta the most as he has been one of the club’s best players this season. Fans will be hoping that other players step up and make themselves be counted. Getting back to the Champions League would be a huge boost for the club and it is what the players should be aiming for.