16 February 2024 , 10:57
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Mikel Arteta kept his cards close to his chest when asked for an injury update ahead of Arsenal ’s Premier League game against Burnley on Saturday.
The Gunners were without Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Fabio Vieira and Emile Smith Rowe for their stunning 6-0 win over West Ham last weekend. Meanwhile, Arteta has not been able to call upon Jurrien Timber and Thomas Partey for a long time due to more serious injuries.
Arsenal are just two points behind Liverpool in the Premier League title race and will be confident against a relegation-threatened Burnley at Turf Moor on Saturday afternoon. But, in keeping with the approach from his mentor Pep Guardiola, Arteta refused to give much away in his pre-match press conference.
“Some of them have been progressing better than others,” Arteta said. “We have a training session again today. Some of them they've done a few beats this week and I am positive that hopefully we will have a few back for tomorrow.” Asked if anyone was ruled out for the game he simply stated: “At the moment, no.”
Asked about Partey, who hasn’t played for Arsenal since October 8, Arteta said: “No, there’s not big setbacks on any of those injuries and Thomas Partey as well is progressing really well. I don’t want to say too much but he’s looking very good and he's on the field already.”
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Arsenal are facing a crucial period of their season, with the 3-1 win over Liverpool earlier this month giving them hope in the title race. They also face Porto in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.
Arteta is likely to rotate his players to keep them fresh. “Well we have to go game by game,” he said. “With certain positions in recent weeks we haven’t had a choice. We had to play them. We had a chance in matches to adjust the load of certain players and make changes. We have tried to manage that in the best way because as you say it’s going to be really important.”
Gabriel Jesus has been out with an injury (Getty Images)Asked about maintaining momentum, he said: “It’s the most important part of the season. We know that every fixture will play a significant part in what we want to achieve. Burnley is the most important one at the moment.
“If you look at how teams have drawn with or beaten them it’s been with very small margins. They’re very well coached and they’ll be very competitive. We know we have a very tough match on Saturday. That’s the only way to play the game. The rest will come.”
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