William Saliba will not play for Arsenal against Southampton on Friday Night Football, according to Gunners boss Mikel Arteta. The centre-back is recovering from a back injury slowly, and Arteta hinted that he is still quite a way from being match-ready.
It now seems doubtful that the Frenchman will be able to play against Manchester City in next week’s important title match after suffering the injury in Arsenal’s last four Europa League games against Sporting Lisbon.
At his news conference, Arteta added, “Regarding William, we still have to wait a little bit more. He’s not making the progress we had hoped for.”
When asked if Saliba might miss the remainder of the season, Arteta responded, “I don’t know. It’s still a little early. We’ll probably know more before the end of next week. Growth has taken place. He is working on something. However, he is not yet ready to be put on the field at the level that is necessary to compete in this league.”
Oleksandr Zinchenko may also miss Arsenal’s game against Southampton. Due to a muscle issue, the left-back missed the 2-2 draw with West Ham and has yet to resume training.
“We will see about that one as well,” Arteta remarked. “We’re not sure, though. Since it is a muscle injury, healing takes time.”
