William Saliba traveled with Arsenal's squad to face Slavia Prague on Tuesday, and Mikel Arteta said the France defender is ready for his first appearance of the season after a back injury sustained at the World Cup kept him out of every match so far.
The 25-year-old played 45 minutes in a closed-door game last week. Whether he features in the Czech capital after such a long layoff is still uncertain, but Arteta said he had no doubts that Saliba is prepared.
The Arsenal manager said the club had carefully measured Saliba's workloads and each step of his recovery to reduce the risk. He added that a center-back, unlike an attacking midfielder or striker who can be swapped out, normally needs to be able to last a full 90 minutes.
He’s built the capacity that we needed, and now it’s about giving him minutes.
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal manager
Saliba managed the back problem throughout last season and was sent to a specialist after the World Cup, where he came off early in France's semifinal defeat to Spain. Surgery was ruled out, but a lengthy rehabilitation followed with no target date for his comeback. He began working alone last month before rejoining full training.
Konsa's emergence complicates the picture
His return hands Arteta a selection problem most rivals would welcome. Ezri Konsa, a £55 million summer signing from Aston Villa, has formed a strong partnership with Gabriel Magalhaes, and Arsenal sit top of the Premier League with the league's best defensive record, five goals allowed in nine games.
Konsa has started seven of those nine league matches. The 29-year-old scored the first goal in a 2-0 win over Everton and starred alongside Gabriel on Sunday as Arsenal won at Anfield against Liverpool for the first time in 14 years.
Before his injury, Saliba and Gabriel anchored the side that won the Premier League last season, the club's first title in 22 years, while giving up only 27 league goals. Saliba made the PFA team of the year for a fourth straight season.
One option is moving Konsa to right back, where he made his England debut and started the World Cup quarterfinal against Norway. That would put him in competition with Ben White and Jurrien Timber, Arsenal's first-choice right backs this season. Saliba's return could also further limit playing time for young center-back Cristhian Mosquera.
Timber and Dowman
Timber avoided sanction against Liverpool after tugging Alexander Isak's shirt in the penalty area. Arteta rejected suggestions that referees might even things out in later games, saying he has a large collection of clips showing similar incidents involving other teams.
I have a lot of clips about shirts, pulls, grabs. So I have a massive library that we can talk about
Mikel Arteta, Arsenal manager
Max Dowman is also in line to play against Slavia, since his three-game ban for a red card at Fleetwood last week covers only domestic matches. The 16-year-old became the first 15-year-old to appear in the Champions League when Arsenal met Slavia a year ago, and a start would make him the youngest Arsenal player to start in the competition, a record held by Cesc Fàbregas.
After Prague, Arsenal host Hull on Saturday before an international break that should give Saliba more time to build his fitness.
