Arsenal are likely to have two spaces to call up youth players for their Champions League clash on Wednesday, with a few youngsters joining pre-match training.
Ahead of Arsenal’s match against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, a number of youngsters were in first-team training.
Youth winger Charles Sagoe Jr. joined the session, along with right-back James Sweet. Midfielders Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, and left-back Lino Sousa could all be seen in training footage as well, with goalkeeper James Hillson also involved.
The vast majority of that group are also in Arsenal’s u19 starting lineup for the UEFA Youth League match against PSV on Wednesday afternoon, but that wouldn’t necessarily stop them being on the bench in the evening.
Sousa, Lewis-Skelly, Nwaneri, and Sagoe Jr. all started against PSV u19s, and Sweet’s absence doesn’t tell us much as he’s ineligible for the Youth League anyway.
Arsenal are likely to call up two youth players for their Champions League clash on Wednesday night, as Mikel Arteta doesn’t have enough senior players to fill his squad – thanks to injuries and the 12-man bench in UEFA competition.
Jurrien Timber and Thomas Partey are both out long-term, and Gabriel Martinelli has also been ruled out of the fixture.
Mohamed Elneny is the only player who may still return in time, but Arteta’s comments that the midfielder is still in the “latter stages” of his rehab process suggested he won’t be back either.
If that’s the case, Arsenal have 21 senior players, including Karl Hein, and a 23-man squad to fill.
Sagoe Jr. is probably the best bet for a call-up, given Martinelli’s absence. Perhaps Sweet’s ineligibility for the u19s will also see his chances of a call boosted, but we’ll have to wait for the lineups to be released on Wednesday night.