Izuchukwu OkosiArsenal manager Mikel Arteta has indicated that his side could welcome back to the starting fold the trio of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Melgahanues for Sunday’s crucial Premier League battle against Manchester City.
The Gunners are atop the Premier League table with 64 points – just a point above City and Liverpool – but the last-season capitulation of the London side is not expected to be an issue this season.
To this end, the former Arsenal captain acknowledges the importance of standout players and offers some measure of good news for the fan base.
“Yeah there is a chance,” Arteta said in his pre-match press conference in response to the availability of his star men.
“They haven’t trained. Tomorrow we have another session, but there is a chance they can be available.”
Arteta used the opportunity to also address the knotty issue of fixture congestion.
“I think that in general the whole calendar has to be looked at because there are a lot of games. It doesn’t look like we’re going to be able to affect it.”
City manager Pep Guardiola meanwhile confirmed that the duo of John Stones and Kyle Walker have not sufficiently recovered from their niggles sustained in international games for England.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
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