After Arne Slot provided his own fitness update for Liverpool, Mikel Arteta then faced the media and updated everyone on the injury concerns that are present within his squad.
The 42-year-old said: “We’re going to do our very best to somehow have them available but it’s very uncertain.
“[Saka] has done a bit of training on the grass. How far we can get him to Sunday, that’s a different question. We have another day, which is a good thing, but we’ll see.
“[Calafiori] needs some more tests. Yesterday he had some, today he’s going to have some more and after that we will know. Last time we thought it was really bad and he ended up playing two or three days after, so let’s see how it is.
“Timber, again, it’s the first session that he could have some involvement. He’s been out for a while, we expected him to be further back than where he is at the moment but, again, we have to wait and see.”
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Bukayo Saka being unavailable would be a big plus for Liverpool
These aren’t the only issues for the Gunners either, with Kieran Tierney, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Martin Odegaard and William Saliba also missing – with the latter being suspended for the match at the Emirates Stadium.
It seems Jurrien Timber has the greatest chance of playing from the trio discussed and if you’d have been given the chance for so many of these options to be out, we would take it with both hands.
With Bukayo Saka outlining this season as one where his side could go on to win the Premier League, he’d have certainly wanted the chance to make an impact in a game against the league leaders.
The absence of the England international is huge for us though and if we don’t leave London with three points, we may be kicking ourselves for not making the most of the opportunity.
We all know that the former Everton midfielder has made his team a master of the dark arts and can expect a typically negative performance from his side, given the odds being stacked against them.
It’s up to our boss to prove he’s the better tactician and once again find a way for his side to win the game, something only one team has been able to do in this campaign.
You can watch Arteta’s fitness update (from 1:57) via BeanymanSports on YouTube:
Arne Slot’s Liverpool reign is about to be turbocharged as Reds enter rollercoaster fixture sequence
