Arsenal face Hull City in the FA Cup on Saturday, and there is some team news for the visitors.
Loan pair Chuba Akpom and Isaac Hayden were expected to be made available by Arsenal, but it Steve Bruce confirmed on Thursday that the players are ineligible, so it’s safe to assume the Gunners have not given Hull City permission to use the pair against us this weekend.
In the past Arsenal have always allowed loan players to play against us, but not this time.
One loan player who will play, however, is Nick Powell. The midfielder has joined Hull on loan from Manchester United and is set to make his debut for the club.
“Nick will definitely play,” said Bruce. “He came here with a bit of an injury but he has now trained for ten days.
“He’s versatile and can play as a striker or as a midfielder and I’m sure he can give us that bit of impetus.
“He’ll definitely play on Saturday, as will all of the ones who haven’t been playing recently.
“Making changes is the only option I’ve got. After Arsenal, we play again on Tuesday and then Friday so I have to make sure we’re fresh enough to compete in those games as well.”
Arsenal are also expected to rotate heavily, and Arsène Wenger provided some team news of his own on Thursday afternoon.