Arsenal handed injury boost as 2 key injured players likely to return to action after international break - Reports
Arsenal defenders Riccardo Calafiori and Takehiro Tomiyasu are set to return to action following the ongoing international break. Both men have missed games due to knee injuries.
Calafiori - who arrived this summer - has scored once in 10 games across competitions. That lone goal came in six outings in the Premier League, where Mikel Arteta's side are fourth after 11 games, behind third-placed Chelsea on goal difference, with both London rivals having 19 points apiece.
Meanwhile, Tomiyasu has played just once this season - in fact only six minutes - in a 3-1 Premier League home win over Southampton last month. However, the 25-year-old, as well as Calafiori, is apparently closing in on a return.
As per Isaan Khan of the Mail (via AFCStuff), the Gunners defensive duo are set to return after the November international break. Whether they would feature in their side's Premier League home game with Nottingham Forest on November 23 remains to be seen, though.
Calafiori, 22, arrived at the Emirates this summer from Bologna in a deal reported to be worth £42 million. Meanwhile, Tomiyasu, is another arrival from Bologna, doing so three years before his current Gunners teammate.
In 84 games across competitions for Mikel Arteta's side, the Japan international has registered two goals and six assists. Both goals came in the Premier League last season as the Gunners finished behind Manchester City for the second straight year, extending their league title drought to a third decade.
Arsenal's Ben White undergoes surgery
Arsenal have been ravaged by injuries this season, particularly in defence. That includes Calafiori and Tomiyasu - as mentioned above - as well as Kieran Tierney and Ben White.
White, 27, has been in and out of the side, starting the last two games - against Chelsea (Premier League) and Inter Milan (UEFA Champions League) - from the bench. He has played 12 times this season across competitions, including nine times in the Premier League.
As per Sky Sports, White has undergone a 'minor' surgical procedure to address a joint issue. Boss Mikel Arteta would hope that the Englishman isn't sidelined for too long as his team fight on multiple fronts.
Following the international break, games come thick and fast for the Gunners. After the Forest clash, Arteta's side take on Sporting CP in the UEFA Champions League three days later before closing out the month with a league trip to West Ham United on November 30.