Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe is closing in on a return to action after four months out.
Smith Rowe injured his groin at the start of September and underwent surgery, but is now back training and has an outside chance of making the squad for Monday’s FA Cup third round tie at Oxford.
The Arsenal squad were given Thursday and Friday off, but are back at London Colney on Saturday and a decision on Smith Rowe’s fitness will be made over the weekend.
The Gunners are naturally keen to get the 22-year-old back in action, however they will not rush his return to the first team.
Arsenal are aware that it will take Smith Rowe time to get fully up to speed and will look to gradually increase his minutes across the coming weeks.
The midfielder’s return will be a huge boost to manager Mikel Arteta, who has been lacking in attacking options recently.
Striker Gabriel Jesus is out with a knee injury and Arsenal want to bring in a new wide forward this month, with Shakhtar Donetsk’s Mykhaylo Mudryk their no1 target.
Arsenal have failed with two bids for the 22-year-old and now face competition for his signature from London rivals Chelsea.
Arteta is expected to rotate his squad for Monday’s trip to third-tier Oxford, just as he has done in the Carabao Cup and Europa League competitions this season. Fabio Vieira, Kieran Tierney and Rob Holding are among several players who should get a chance to start.
Arsenal want to add to their squad this month to bolster their title charge, with Manchester City closing their lead at the top of the Premier League to five points by beating Chelsea on Thursday night.
