Albert Sambi Lokonga has confirmed he won’t be joining the Arsenal squad in Germany due to a muscular injury.
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal squad travelled to Germany over the weekend, with 30 players making the trip for a pre-season training camp at Adidas headquarters. But one notable absentee was Albert Sambi Lokonga.
Writing on Instagram, Lokonga explained why he’s not with the squad for the tour.
“Due to a small muscular injury, I’ll sadly not be part of the summer camp with the team in Germany,” Lokonga wrote.
“I’m [focusing] now on my recovery to prepare [for] the season and be ready to help the team at my fullest capacity.”
Lokonga will miss the pre-season friendly against Nurnberg on Thursday, having also missed the behind-closed-doors friendly against Watford last week.
The midfielder will be in a race against time to get fit before the trip to the USA, with the squad reportedly leaving this weekend.
Lokonga had previously hinted at a summer exit from Arsenal, suggesting he wants regular football.
“I don’t know, I will try to go somewhere I will play,” Lokonga said of his plans for next season. “That’s the most important thing, to have some games and play game after game.”
Reports suggest Burnley are interested, but there hasn’t been any significant progress on a deal so far.
In the meantime, Lokonga would be best served playing matches in pre-season to catch the eye at interested clubs, so he’ll hope to get fit as soon as possible.
Arsenal’s Pre-Season Fixtures and Results
- Saturday, July 8th – Arsenal 1-1 Watford (Behind closed doors)
- Thursday, July 13th, 18:00 – FC Nurnberg vs Arsenal
- Thursday, July 20th, 01:30 – MLS All-Stars vs Arsenal
- Saturday, July 22nd, 22:00 – Arsenal vs Manchester United
- Thursday, July 27th, 03:30 – Arsenal vs Barcelona
- Wednesday, August 2nd, 18:00 – Arsenal vs Monaco
- Sunday, August 6th, 16:00 – Arsenal vs Manchester City
Times in BST