Arsenal news live: Arteta wants Isco, Aouar’s claim, Saka, Partey, Willan latest

Arsenal news and gossip is coming in thick and fast and Sportarena is on hand to bring you all the very latest from Emirates stadium.

Arsenal want Madrid midfielder Isco

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has asked the club’s chief to sanction a January loan move for Real Madrid playmaker Isco.

The Spanish coach is eager to strengthen his midfield options with creative midfielder and Isco become an emerged target for north London club according to reports.

The details are outlined by a report in Defensa Central, as cited by Sport Witness, which claim that the Gunners could strike a loan deal for the attacking midfielder before signing him permanently in the summer.

The Gunners already have Spanish midfielder Dani Ceballos on loan from Madrid and that could tempt Isco to the Emirates.

However, Real Madrid would prefer to sell Isco permanently in January, according to the report.

Houssem Aouar axed by Lyon

Lyon have dropped Houssem Aouar – a long-time target for the Arsenal – from their matchday squad this weekend for disciplinary reasons.

The attacking midfielder was an unused substitute against Angers last weekend and that sparked a series of events that has seen him excluded entirely this weekend.

According to L’Equipe, the 22-year-old midfielder has been disciplined for not wanting to warm down with his team-mates after the game.

It is claimed that the Ligue 1 club’s sporting director Juninho and director of football Vincent Ponsot, with the consent of president Jean-Michel Aulas, have decided to discipline Aouar for this weekend’s home clash against Reims.

Aouar, who scored two goals with one assist in all competitions so far this term, was heavily linked to Arsenal in the summer transfer window but no move materialised.

Saka, Willqin, Partey, Elneny: Latest Arsenal injury news and return dates ahead of Wolves clash

After a 3-0 suffered defeat to Aston Villa prior to the international break, as well as a goalless draw with Leeds United at Elland Road last Sunday, the pressure was on Mikel Arteta’s men to get back to winning ways in Norway.

Despite a forgettable, lacklustre opening 45 minutes, the north London club emerged as 3-0 winners thanks to second goals from Nicolas Pepe, Reiss Nelson and starlet Folarin Balogun.

Now, Mikel Arteta’s side will be desperate to get back to winning ways in the Premier League and put their recent run of indifferent league results behind them.

However, ahead of Sunday evening’s showdown with Wolves, Mikel Arteta has a plethora of injury troubles to contend with.

With that in mind, here is a round-up of all the very latest Gunners injury news and those all-important expected return dates.

David Luiz

The Brazilian defender was forced off at half time during the 3-0 win over Molde in midweek, potentially causing Mikel Arteta a headache ahead of the clash with Wolves.

It was unclear what the exact nature of the injury was, but the Gunners boss confirmed after the game that his withdrawal at half time was more of a precaution.

‘I hope that he’s fine’ said the Arsenal boss. ‘This surface (3G) brings some different challenges to some players who had issues in their bodies and it’s quite aggressive to play on this surface. We wanted to take zero risks on that. I think he should be fine.’

It is hoped he will return to the squad for Sunday’s game against Wolverhampton Wanderer.

Willian

Summer signing Willian was forced off at half-time against Leeds United on last Sunday – and it was not for tactical reasons.

After the game, Arteta confirmed that the Brazilian winger had felt a slight niggle in the first 45 and did not want to run the risk of him participating in the second half and making the problem worse, meaning he was replaced by Nelson.

‘He was feeling something muscular and we had to take him off,’ the Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said.

Willian did not travel to Norway for the clash with Molde but Mikel Arteta will be hoping the winger’s injury does not see him sidelined for too long.

Willian is likely to face a late fitness test ahead of the clash with Wolves.

Bukayo Saka

Having featured three times for England over the recent international break, Bukayo Saka would have been hoping for the chance to catch his breath against Leeds.

However, the 19-year-old starlet was called into action just six minutes into the second half, being forced to come on and cover for Nicolas Pepe, who was sent off.

However, the teenager didn’t finish the contest as he came off worse in a 50-50 challenge and suffered a blow to his knee. Arsenal have yet to issue an update on the severity of the problem – means the starlet doubt for Sunday game’s.

Thomas Partey

With Mikel Arteta already a midfielder short for the clash with Leeds, the Gunners boss would have been desperate to have summer signing Thomas Partey available for selection.

The 27-year-old, who was signed for £45million from Atletico Madrid in the summer transfer window, came off against Aston Villa before the international break with a thigh problem.

That resulted in the midfield enforcer being unable to meet up with the Ghana squad over the course of the international break, meaning he stayed at London Colney to try and get himself in the best possible shape for the clash with Leeds United game.

In the end, Partey missed both the clash with Leeds and the trip to Norway. It remains to be seen whether or not he will return for Wolves’ trip to north London on Sunday evening.

Mohamed Elneny and Sead Kolasinac are still unavailable for the feature both returning a positive Covid-19 test whilst on international duty with Bosnia and Egypt.

It was confirmed over a week ago that the Gunners trio had tested positive for the virus.

Both are Under self-isolation guidelines, this, of course, means they are still unavailable for selection.

Meanwhile, Pablo Mari, Gabriel Martinelli and Calum Chambers remains sendlined for the selection.

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