Four things spotted from latest Arsenal training session with Bukayo Saka reality clear

Arsenal will look to shake off the disappointment of their defeat to Bournemouth at the weekend when Shakhtar Donetsk visit the Emirates in the Champions League on Tuesday night

Arsenal have trained for the final time before Tuesday night’s Champions League clash against Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates Stadium.

And with Mikel Arteta ’s team taking four points from their opening two games, a win against the Ukraine champions should leave the Gunners in a good place to progress to the knockout stages – while helping to alleviate the disappointment of Saturday evening’s defeat to Bournemouth.

But there were a number of notable absentees from their session this afternoon as Arteta’s injury headache simply fails to shift.

Here are some of the things we noticed from training on matchday minus one.

Saka absence

Bukayo Saka was not involved, which all but rules him out of tomorrow’s game as he continues to recover from the hamstring injury picked up while playing for England against Greece in the UEFA Nations League.

“With Bukayo, let’s see how he feels today and (after) the training session we have later on,” Arteta had said earlier in the day.

The forward has been Arteta’s man for all occasions when fit and while the Gunners enjoy a wealth of attacking options his absence remains a major blow.

He is not expected to be a long-term absentee.

Saliba smiles

William Saliba’s red card may have been decisive in Saturday’s disappointment on the south coast but he looked chipper during a drill that appeared closer to basketball than football.

The French defender will start against Shakhtar but Arteta was unclear if the club were going to appeal the Premier League dismissal that will see him suspended next weekend.

“I leave that more to the club to understand the circumstances. They will have to decide it,” the Arsenal boss said on Monday. “It is about perspective. We want to win in any context but the reality is we made it very difficult for ourselves.”

The drill comes as Mikel Merino admitted he feels like he’s now living in the land of the giants, with his new team-mates closer to a basketball side.

Arteta action

The manager, 42, showed he can still get involved too by showing off his touch in a couple of drills with his players – and he even offered a glimpse of the Champions League’s yellow winter ball.

Odegaard wait

Captain Martin Odegaard is not yet involved with team training sessions despite Arteta saying in recent days that the Norway playmaker will be fit before the next international break.

Five weeks have passed since Odegaard hurt his ankle ligaments while on international duty and he has been sorely missed and while Arteta insists he is getting closer, the wait continues.

Jurrien Timber and Takehiro Tomiyasu were also not involved as they recover from injuries.

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