The Premier League is back this weekend as players make their return from international football for one last time before the World Cup in November. Arsenal will be hoping to pick up where they left off, sitting top of the Premier League table after seven games played.
If they want to continue that fine form, they will first have to overcome north London rivals Tottenham at the Emirates this weekend. The Lilywhites have also impressed early in the campaign, yet to taste defeat in the league and sitting third with the potential to leapfrog the Gunners.
Mikel Arteta would have been hoping to have a fully fit squad at his disposal, but that doesn't appear to be the case, with the potential for more issues coming out of the break than going into it. With that said, here's a look at Arsenal's injury concerns for the north London derby.
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Martin Odegaard
football.london understands that club captain Odegaard is expected to be fully fit for the clash with Tottenham at the weekend. The Norway international had picked up a knock in training, missing the victory over Brentford just before the break for international duty.
Despite that issue, the playmaker was still called up for the run of fixtures for his nation, with the manager claiming he will be involved in some capacity. Odegaard started both games for Norway, eyeing a full return to club action.
Kieran Tierney
Arsenal defender Kieran Tierney caused plenty of concern while playing for Scotland in Saturday's UEFA Nations League clash against the Republic of Ireland, with the left-back subbed off as a precaution due to a head injury. Since then, the club have released a statement confirming that Tierney has returned from the break early, with no indication of when he may return to action.
Thomas Partey
Midfielder Thomas Partey picked up a thigh injury earlier this season, missing a number of games, but made his return to the first team in the 3-0 win against Brentford just before the international break. The Ghana international was due to start in his nation's friendly with Brazil, but had to pull out of the line-up.
Like Tierney, Partey has had to return to the club early from the international break due to a knee problem. “We didn’t want to take that risk in a friendly game to play him against Brazil," Ghana boss Otto Addo said. "But surely playing a player like him against a squad like Brazil would have been helpful.”
Oleksandr Zinchenko
football.london understands that Oleksandr Zinchenko is set to return for the north London derby at the weekend. The Ukraine international was another doubt, having not been called up for his nation due to a calf issue in an official statement, but he appears to have shaken off any concerns to be available for the game.
Takehiro Tomiyasu
There is no indication yet from the Japanese FA that Arsenal full-back Takehiro Tomiyasu has suffered another fitness problem, however he has also made an early return to Arsenal for what has been described as "club circ*mstances".
The full statement from the Japanese FA reads: "We would like to inform you that defender TOMIYASU Takehiro (Arsenal) will be withdrawing from the SAMURAI BLUE ahead of the KIRIN CHALLENGE CUP 2022 Ecuador National Team match on September 27th due to club circ*mstances."
Cedric Soares
football.london understands that it's likely Cedric Soares will be available for selection to face Spurs. The right-back was expected to make a first start of the season against FC Zurich in the Europa League, but faced a spell out with injury in the build-up to the game.
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