Mikel Arteta will make a late decision on Bruno Guimarães before Arsenal's trip to Aston Villa on Monday night. The midfielder missed Arsenal's previous match because of a groin issue, but Arteta said he is still in contention after training again.
Arteta said: "We just managed the last few days with him [Guimaraes]," and added, "He's out on the pitch, he’s been in training sessions. But we need to manage the load to get to Monday in the best possible condition to be available to be selected. He's potentially available."
Arteta's load management call
That leaves Arsenal waiting until late in the build-up to see whether Guimarães can be involved at Aston Villa vs Arsenal. The key detail is not that he is back in training, because that part was already clear from Arteta's update. It is that the staff still want to manage his load carefully after the groin problem.
It is a cautious line, and probably the right one. A player who has just missed a match through injury should not be pushed back in too quickly if there is still a fitness question to answer.
Other selection decisions around the squad
Ezri Konsa is expected to make the squad and is in contention for a debut against his former club, while Gabriel Martinelli has also been linked with a move away in separate transfer reporting. Aston Villa will still be the more immediate concern for Arsenal, though, and the Guimarães decision is the one that can change the midfield picture before kick-off.
Arsenal have a late call to make, and Monday night at Villa Park is the deadline. If Guimarães gets through the final check, he is available to be selected; if not, Arsenal go into the game without him again.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
