Mikel Arteta was able to welcome back Arsenal star Gabriel Jesus from injury prior to the international break. The Brazilian forward had been out for over four months before his substitute cameo against Fulham and he has now been able to work on building his fitness for the last two weeks alongside some brief appearances against Crystal Palace and Sporting CP.
Upon the confirmation that his injury last December required surgery, the Gunners looked as though they had suffered a major blow to their Premier League title hopes. However, Eddie Nketiah delivered a number of top performances in his absence, before the signing of Leandro Trossard in January helped matters significantly.
Nketiah was somewhat out of goal scoring form throughout February before injuries saw him play just 18 minutes in March. Thankfully for Arteta, Trossard began providing in the big moments, setting up six goals in his last five games, with Gabriel Martinelli also making a timely return to the hot form he had earlier in the season.
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Unfortunately, it isn't all good news in north London following the latest updates on William Saliba's back injury. After coming off early into the Europa League clash with Sporting CP, the defender missed out on an international call-up with France and is yet to resume full first-team training.
"He is progressing, unfortunately he still has some discomfort in his back," Arteta revealed on Friday. "We are trying to manage him in the best possible way. Unfortunately he’s not gonna be fit for this game and we’re trying and he’s trying to do everything to feel better and get back training. But not yet."
Despite the Saliba worry, at the opposite end of the pitch, Martinelli and Trossard seem at the peak of their powers, alongside Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, who have both consistently impressed in this campaign. Therefore, the return of Jesus to full fitness, coupled with the form of the Gunners' attacking quartet, is a scary thought for opposition defenders.
All five are highly unlikely to play at the same time, but having one available to come off the bench if needed is huge for Arsenal ahead of their significant Premier League title run-in. When asked whether or not Brazil international Jesus was close to 100 per cent, Arteta sent a clear message to his side's remaining opponents.
"He is very close to that, in the last 10 days he has really made a big step forward, you can see that he is looser and not thinking about it, he is creating the chaos in training that he is capable of, he is in a really good place now," he said.
Arsenal must still play title rivals Manchester City at Etihad Stadium while also travelling to Anfield to take on Liverpool. Both teams will certainly know the threat of Jesus, with City selling him to the Gunners in the summer after a five-and-a-half-year stint in Manchester, while he has also scored five goals in his 13 appearances against Jurgen Klopp's men.
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