Mikel Arteta provides key injury updates ahead of Manchester United trip

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided several key injury updates ahead of his side’s trip to Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.

The Gunners are the only side left in the Premier League with a 100% record through five games. Their perfect start was preserved in the week as they beat Aston Villa 2-1 despite being without Thomas Partey, Mohamed Elneny and Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Partey and Zinchenko had previously missed the Fulham victory due to injuries, while Elneny picked up a significant problem against the Cottagers.

Mikel Arteta provides key injury updates ahead of Manchester United trip

Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s game against a resurgent Manchester United on Sunday, Mikel Arteta provided some updates on his injured stars.

The boss said that he expects Elneny to be sidelined for “months” and Partey for “weeks”, while he said that Zinchenko has not been able to train with the team. Thus, the Ukrainian is poised to miss the weekend’s game.

If Zinchenko does miss out, Sambi Lokonga will surely retain his place in Arsenal’s midfield alongside Granit Xhaka after he impressed against Villa on Wednesday. However, it’s unknown whether the pair will be joined in the middle of the park by Martin Odegaard, who’s also a doubt after he picked up a knock in the week.

Arteta confirmed that both Odegaard and Aaron Ramsdale, who’s struggling with a minor hamstring problem, are being assessed ahead of the clash.

“Hopefully they’ll [Ramsdale and Odegaard] be available to train with the team,” the Spaniard said.

While the Gunners coped admirably against an out-of-sorts Aston Villa last time out, the Red Devils represent a much tougher challenge for Arteta and his depleted ranks. Partey and Zinchenko are huge absences in a contest like this, while supporters will be praying that Odegaard’s fit enough to start considering the form he’s in.

An already tricky game for Arsenal has got a whole lot harder.