Arsenal head into the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain with a new injury concern emerging after Mikel Arteta was handed a boost
Mikel Arteta has been handed an Arsenal injury boost before the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain. Mikel Arteta’s fitness concerns dropped down to two before the final Premier League clash of the season against Crystal Palace, but jumped back up to three by full-time.
That was because, following Mikel Merino’s return to the fold, Noni Madueke was forced off midway through the second half with a potential hamstring injury. However, he looks to have avoided suffering an injury and is therefore likely to be available for selection to Arteta.
There is real uncertainty whether Jurrien Timber will be able to return to the Arsenal squad after an eight-week injury lay-off. Ben White has already been ruled out of featuring in the European final because of a knee injury suffered earlier this month.
With all of that being said, football.london has taken a look at the latest updates on Arsenal’s injured stars before the huge clash in Budapest.
Noni Madueke
Madueke became a big injury doubt for the PSG game after pulling up clutching his hamstring in the win over Crystal Palace. However, The Athletic have claimed he has avoided injury and is expected to be fit for this weekend’s final.
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Possible return date: Paris Saint-Germain (N) – Saturday, May 30.
Jurrien Timber
Timber has missed the last two-and-a-half months with a groin injury. The chances of him returning to face PSG appear slim after he did not feature in the squad against Palace.
What Arteta said (May 21): “Jurrien, let’s hope he can do the same [as Merino] in the next few days. But he’s still a little further behind Mikel at that moment.”
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Possible return date: N/A.
Mikel Merino
Merino was an injured player that did make his return at Selhurst Park. He played 28 minutes off the bench and did not appear to struggle which suggests he will be fully fit to face Luis Enrique’s side.
Possible return date: Returned.
Ben White
White picked up a knee injury against West Ham that ruled him out for the remainder of the season and distinguished any chance of him going to the World Cup.
He was captured wearing a knee brace during Arsenal’s title celebrations this past Sunday.
What Arteta said (May 14): “ We’ll have to wait and see. It looks like a long-term injury, so at the moment, the focus is on when we can have him back available for Arsenal. And that’s not going to happen for many, many weeks.”
Possible return date: N/A.
