William Saliba is among three Arsenal players who will be walking the disciplinary tight-rope if they are to feature in the Premier League fixture against West Ham United on Boxing Day.
Having reached the World Cup final with France there have been concerns that the defender won't be ready to face the Hammers, especially when taking into consideration that most of the Gunners' stars that featured in Qatar were given at least a week off after exiting the tournament.
In his pre-match press conference, Mikel Arteta revealed that Saliba is due back in Arsenal training shortly and might be in contention to face the Hammers as the youngster could take inspiration from international teammate Kylian Mbappe who has already returned to training with Paris Saint-Germain.
READ MORE: Every word Mikel Arteta said on William Saliba return, January transfers and Martinelli contract
With that said, taking the 21-year-old disciplinary record into account, it might tempt Arteta to leave the Frenchman out of a Premier League starting line-up for the first time this season just to protect him.
As confirmed by the FA in their 'Information for Players on Disciplinary Procedures' 2022-23 season guide at the beginning of the campaign, any player who accumulates five bookings before the cut-off point of 19 matches will have to serve an automatic one-match ban.
Currently, Saliba is the only Arsenal player in immediate danger of being handed a suspension as he has received four yellow cards thus far in the Premier League this season, so he must watch his step in the coming weeks. If booked against the Hammers he would miss the trip to Brighton and Hove Albion five days later.
Interestingly, Gabriel Jesus would have been in the same situation as the Frenchman had he not been ruled out for possibly up to three months after undergoing knee surgery. In perhaps what could be viewed as a bonus, by the time he returns to action he will no longer be a suspension risk.
Elsewhere, Bukayo Saka and Ben White are on three yellow cards so they have to watch their step over the festive period. Whilst another booking against West Ham wouldn't rule either out of the Brighton clash - unless they are sent off - if either is booked in each of the next two games they would be suspended for the big game against Newcastle United on January 3.
Looking past Newcastle and the Premier League's ruling that 'yellow cards are not carried over to the EFL Cup or FA Cup' with games against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United on the horizon, the Arsenal manager may want to have words with his players, advising them to watch their step with regards to tackling and dissent.
With 14 games of the Premier League season gone, Saliba, Saka, White and the rest of Arteta's squad have another five gameweeks to avoid a suspension. Of course, with the campaign set to resume following the winter World Cup, it won't be until after the Man United fixture on January 22 that the Gunners reach the aforementioned cut-off point.
The next Arsenal players with the most yellow cards across the squad are Gabriel Magalhaes, Granit Xhaka and captain Martin Odegaard on two. Meanwhile, Gabriel Martinelli, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Thomas Partey are all on one yellow card, so should be able to relax over the next few weeks.
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