Mikel Arteta gave updates on Jorginho, Thomas Partey and Ben White after Arsenal were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday
Arsenal endured a frustrating Saturday evening, with Brentford leaving the Emirates Stadium with a point while the home side left with worrying injuries. The Gunners are now 10 points adrift of Premier League leaders Liverpool, who can take another step towards the trophy against West Ham on Sunday.
Thomas Partey smashed past Mark Flekken on the break after being set up by Declan Rice, but the good times didn’t last. Arsenal conceded an equaliser on the second phase from a corner when Yoane Wissa swivelled on a loose ball and Bukayo Saka spurned a great chance for Arsenal’s second.
It was their 12th draw in 32 Premier League games and means the title race is all but run, with attention turning now to the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid on Wednesday.
Unfortunately there was bad news on that front, too, with potentially costly injuries striking at the worst possible time. Here Mirror Football brings you the latest headlines involving the club.
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Triple injury blow
Even before kick-off on Saturday there was bad news, with Ben White absent from the squad. “Ben White couldn’t be in the squad because he felt something again post-training yesterday,” Arteta explained.
Speaking after the match, he added: “Again, we don’t know [if White will be fit to face Real Madrid]. So he could not be in condition to be in the squad today and be selected. So we have a few days but we’ll have to wait and see.”
The match also saw Jorginho and Partey forced off the pitch with injuries. Arteta said of Jorginho: “He said he could not breathe properly so it might be to do with one of the ribs. It is strange because Jorgi normally carries on so that means it is something significant I think.”
On Partey, he added: “We didn’t expect the issue with Thomas that we had to take him out,” he said. “He felt something so we didn’t want to take any risks. We don’t know [the diagnosis], I haven’t spoken to the doctors yet. So they will check him now and see how he is.”
Martinelli rages at Norgaard
It could have been even worse for Arsenal, had Gabriel Martinelli not been fortunate to avoid a serious injury when tackled by Christian Norgaard. The Brentford skipper brought down the Arsenal forward on the break in the first half, but only received a yellow card.
“I didn’t see it again, but in my opinion, in the moment, if my foot was on the floor he could break my leg,” Martinelli told Sky Sports. “He said he didn’t mean it and I believe him, but still he could’ve broken my leg. For me, it was red. I need to see it again to be sure, but for me it was nasty.”
Arteta said it was a “clear” red card for Norgaard in the 28th minute, but referee Simon Hooper and the VAR disagreed, allowing him to play on.
Semi-automated VAR in action
Kieran Tierney was handed a first Premier League start since May 2023 on Saturday – and he thought he had marked the occasion with a goal. The Scottish full-back headed in Ethan Nwaneri’s cross in the first half, but his celebrations were short lived.
The new semi-automated offside technology was in action and quickly chalked off the header, with Tierney quite clearly beyond the last defender.
A statement from the Premier League Match Centre on social media read: “VAR checked the referee’s call of goal – and established that Tierney was in an offside position and recommended that the goal was disallowed.”
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