Arsenal: Martin Odegaard and Kieran Tierney doubts with illness

Martin Odegaard and Kieran Tierney are doubts for Arsenal against Fulham with illness, while Gabriel Jesus, Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard are injured.

The Lowdown: Attacking trio out

Speaking before their game away at Craven Cottage in the Premier League, Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Jesus, Nketiah and Trossard are all still ruled out through injury.

They all did not make the squad for Thursday evening’s 2-2 draw with Sporting in the UEFA Europa League, and Arteta will have to think again about how he shapes up his forward line against Marco Silva’s side.

The Latest: Odegaard and Tierney doubts

Taking to Twitter, The Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor says that ‘late decisions’ have to be made over both Odegaard and Tierney, who could be ruled out again through illness after they too missed out on the squad to play Sporting:

“Some Arsenal team news ahead of trip to Fulham. Late decisions to be made on Martin Odegaard (illness), Kieran Tierney (illness) & Leandro Trossard (groin & least likely to feature). Gabriel Jesus in training & under assessment ahead of potential return to matchday squad.“

The Verdict: Fingers crossed

Arteta will certainly have his fingers crossed that Odegaard and Tierney can recover in time, especially considering that he has already ruled out Jesus, Nketiah and Trossard with injury, alongside the long-term absentee of Mohamed Elneny.

If they were also ruled out, Oleksandr Zinchenko would be expected to keep his place at left-back, while Fabio Vieira could play Odegaard’s roaming role in midfield.

However, Arteta will not want to risk burning out the players that are fit to play, and so will want as many members of the squad to return as quickly as possible, with a European campaign to deal with on top of a Premier League title race.