Jurrien Timber joined Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard in missing Arsenal’s training session on Thursday, raising doubts about his involvement this weekend.
Sky Sports report that Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, and Jurrien Timber were all missing from Arsenal’s open training session on Thursday morning.
Saka’s absence isn’t a surprise, with the winger expected to be out this weekend. The 24-year-old’s injury isn’t currently believed to be too serious though, with the expectation that he’ll be back before the match against Tottenham Hotspur later this month.
Odegaard’s non-involvement is a little more disappointing, as Mikel Arteta had hinted that the midfielder could be back in the squad against Sunderland this weekend.
There’s still time for Odegaard to return to training ahead of Saturday’s game, but with every passing day it becomes less likely.
As for Timber, the right-back’s absence is a new and unexplained one. Sky report that he “could be a doubt” for the Sunderland match, but we’ll have to wait for Arteta’s pre-match press conference on Friday for a full update.
Mikel Merino and Max Dowman are also set to miss the Sunderland match with their own foot and ankle injuries, so it’s possible Arsenal will be without five potential first-team players for the match.