The losing streak for Arsenal kicked off with defeat to West Ham at Emirates Stadium with a 2-1 loss to Fulham coming the next weekend before another 2-0 defeat at home, this time against Liverpool. Defeat to Jurgen Klopp's side in the FA Cup means Arsenal must now rely on winning either the Premier League title or Champions League to claim a trophy this season.
Injuries have significantly impacted Arteta this season with new signing Jurrien Timber suffering a severe knee injury on his Premier League debut. Thomas Partey has also been plagued by muscular issues this season, while both Vieira and Takehiro Tomiyasu have missed significant chunks of the season.
With those four all missing the Liverpool clash earlier this month for a number of reasons, Gabriel Jesus was also absent after feeling something in his knee, as confirmed by Arteta after the game. "He had some pain in his knee, so we did a scan, and it showed something. Hopefully, it is not something big; it's the same knee that he had [previously injured], so we cannot take any risks," Arteta said.
Fabio Vieira is another first-team star who has missed action but both he and Jesus have since returned to training out in Dubai. Considering the Brazil international has only missed a few weeks, a return against Crystal Palace is likely and with concern prominent given it was a third knee issue in just over a year, Arteta will likely be very thankful he has not suffered another problem in that area.As for Vieira, Arteta may opt to ease him back into action with his last appearance coming in early November. Zinchenko being available for the London derby also appears to be the most likely outcome, although a plaguing calf issue has already resulted in him missing several months since his move from Manchester City last summer and there is no guarantee he makes the game.
As for Partey, his January absence was always going to happen, regardless of injury, due to his participation at AFCON with Ghana. However, the decision was made for him to remain with Arsenal and continue his rehabilitation at his current club.
"Hopefully, it's weeks [until he's fit again]," Arteta revealed in his most recent update on the 30-year-old. "How many weeks it will be will depend a little bit on how long the next step of training with the team will take him, but he's progressing well." Tomiyasu returned in the defeat to Fulham but then swiftly departed England to participate in the Asia Cup with Japan.
"He’s doing really well. He’s going through a really significant injury but he’s flying at the stage that he is right now. The way that he works every day is very satisfying to watch," he said. "We’re still going to miss him for a long time. The first few steps are crucial for the amount of work they have to do in the knee to get the mobility and the strength back."
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