Bournemouth set for unusual injury situation against Arsenal | OneFootball

AFC Bournemouth could be in a rare position of having zero injury problems when they host Arsenal this weekend.

Bournemouth’s Lewis Cook (R) fouls Swansea City’s Charlie Patino (L) during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Bournemouth and Swansea City at the Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, southern England on January 25, 2024. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Your average Premier League club has around five or six players either struggling with injury, suspended, or otherwise unavailable for this weekend’s fixtures, but AFC Bournemouth are an anomaly.

Bournemouth have just one injury ‘concern’ ahead of their game against Arsenal, with Tyler Adams having missed their start to the season with a back problem.

But even Adams is expected to be fit in time for Saturday’s match.

LEEDS, ENGLAND: Tyler Adams during his time with Leeds United on March 11, 2023. The midfielder has made just four appearances since joining Bournemouth (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

“He’s coming from a period of 18-20 months where he has played very little football, so we cannot rush anything,” Andoni Iraola said of Adams ahead of the international break.

“He has completed all the checks and is ready to train with the group. I hope he’s going to help us from the Arsenal game.”

Things can quickly change in football, and it’s still possible Adams might not quite be ready to feature significantly against the Gunners. But the rest of the Bournemouth squad should be.

BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND: Neto of Bournemouth waves to the fans after the pre-season friendly match between Bournemouth and Rayo Vallecano at Vitality Stadium on August 04, 2024. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)

By contrast, Arsenal could have up to 10 players out of action on Saturday.

Then there are ongoing injury concerns around Ben White, Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Thomas Partey, Gabriel Martinelli, and Oleksandr Zinchenko.

At least a few of those seven players should be passed fit, with Havertz and Partey seemingly only ruled out of the international break as a precautionary measure. But it’s hard to say which of the other five could be ready to start.