Mikel Arteta drops Arsenal team news hint for PSG and provides update on injury scare

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has dropped a possible team news hint ahead of the upcoming Champions League semi-final with PSG. The Gunners’ whole season now rides on the semi-final, the first leg of which takes place a week on Tuesday at the Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta’s men will see Liverpool win the Premier League title in the coming days, and while they are still looking to keep up momentum in the Premier League, beating Ipswich Town comfortably 4-0 on Sunday, there is no doubting that they will prioritise attempting to win their first-ever Champions League now that they have reached the final four.

Many in the Arsenal squad are now battling for a starting spot in those PSG games, and the midfielder in particular is up for grabs, with Thomas Partey suspended and Jorginho struggling with injury. Leandro Trossard staked his claim at Portman Road, scoring twice, and Arteta hinted that he could use the Belgian in a deeper position against PSG.

The Spaniard said: “He's certainly ready to play in any position - we have to make certain adjustments, not because of PSG, but because of the situation we had as well with Thomas [Partey] and a few other players. But that's good because the team shows adaptability and versatility for certain players to play in different positions. That's very much needed, especially when we have the numbers we have at the moment.”

Arsenal had another injury scare in the first half when Leif Davies put in a nasty-looking tackle on Bukayo Saka, catching the winger high up his heel, a challenge that saw the Ipswich man sent off. Asked about the challenge, Arteta said: “The referee made a decision, that is clear. He was a bit sore but it's nothing serious, so that’s good.” Asked if he was worried in the moment, he added: “I do, especially with the numbers we have right now and especially when [tackles] are with your back to goal because normally it's the moment when the foot is planted, your weight is there and you cannot really react to it, but he's fine.”

Arsenal now face Crystal Palace on Wednesday night, less than a week before the PSG game, and it would be logical to rest players for that game, but Arteta must find balance amid a handful of injuries and also wanting to keep up momentum.

“We have to somehow put 11 players out there and have four or five changes,” he continued. “Let's see how they recover in the next few days. The good thing is they are willing to play because they like the rhythm as well. We are so used to that rhythm every three days that the boys are demanding and then we don't have a game on the weekend. We have a gap there, so let's see how we get there on Wednesday.”

Arsenal made easy work of Ipswich, scoring twice in each half, while they were already two goals up by the time the Tractor Boys went down to 10 men. “We're really happy with the performance,” said Arteta of his side’s display. “I think the first 35 minutes is one of the best 35 minutes we've played this season, at the back of the game in Madrid, and we scored two goals - we could have scored three or four to be fair.

“We really dominated the game, very high intensity and understanding what we had to do today to win here. When they got the red card, the context of the game changed and we were in control, scored another two goals and made certain rotations. So overall a very positive afternoon.”

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