Mikel Arteta hints at new Arsenal injury boosts for Nottingham Forest clash | OneFootball

Gunners’ fitness issues may continue to clear ahead of City Ground visit in the Premier League

Mikel Arteta has hinted that Arsenal could get more players back from injury for their Premier League trip to Nottingham Forest this weekend.

The Gunners did not suffer any fresh fitness setbacks on Wednesday night as they beat Chelsea 3-2 in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie, with William Saliba and Leandro Trossard both starting after shaking off respective knocks that saw them miss the FA Cup win at Portsmouth.

Arsenal remained without the likes of defenders Riccardo Calafiori and Piero Hincapie at Stamford Bridge, as well as centre-back Cristhian Mosquera and youngster Max Dowman.

"It might be,” Arteta told reporters on Friday morning when asked if it was possible that any of Arsenal’s injured cohort could be back to face struggling Forest.

“So I need to meet now with the medical staff. We have a training session now, and we will see if somebody is available for the weekend. I cannot tell you.”

Calafiori is a regular starter for Arsenal at left-back but has not played since the Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Crystal Palace before Christmas due to an unspecified knock.

He was named in the team to face Brighton in the Premier League four days later, only to withdraw during the warm-up as Myles Lewis-Skelly took his place. The Italian international has missed the last six matches across all competitions.

Hincapie, who had been filling in for Calafiori on the left, last featured in the goalless draw with Liverpool last week, limping off shortly before the hour mark with a hamstring issue that kept him out against both Portsmouth and Chelsea.

Mosquera and Dowman are longer-term absentees, with the former having suffered an ankle injury during the 2-0 win over Brentford in early December.

16-year-old Dowman, meanwhile, sustained ankle ligament damage while playing for Arsenal’s Under-21 side in a friendly against Manchester United last month.

Arteta said before the game against Chelsea that Mosquera and Dowman had “very similar” injuries and were both “a few weeks” away from resuming training.

He said that Calafiori’s return was probably also a matter of weeks, though he did not know when Hincapie would be back.