Arsenal staff have been taken aback by summer signing Noni Madueke behind-the-scenes, with a twist now coming to light on the forward’s injury return timeline.
Mikel Arteta is now without star defender William Saliba once again, not to mention winger Gabriel Martinelli.
Delivering a pre-match injury update ahead of the Gunners’ Carabao Cup fourth round clash at home to Brighton on Wednesday evening, Arteta didn’t delve into too much detail on the extent of their problems, but the duo have now joined their injury list.
“He’s out. We are assessing him [Saliba], but he won’t be involved in this match,” said Arteta.
“Yeah, it looks like he’s [Martinelli] going to be out. We have to do some more tests and see the extent of the injury, but this game is going to be too early for him.”
Saliba and Martinelli are accompanied by Gabriel Jesus, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Madueke, who are all unavailable for selection right now due to various issues.
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Jesus has been sidelined since the turn of the year after rupturing his ACL in an FA Cup defeat to Man United, and reports have suggested that the Brazilian may not be back in action until 2026.
Odegaard, meanwhile, is suffering real bad luck with injuries right now.
The Arsenal captain had only just returned from a shoulder problem when he set up Gabriel Magalhaes’ winner away to Newcastle, but it didn’t take long for Odegaard to be sidelined once again.
The £240,000-per-week playmaker picked up a medial collateral ligament injury in the 2-0 win over West Ham just prior to the last international break, and that is expected to keep him out until mid-November.
Luckily for Arteta, the north Londoners could soon welcome Havertz back.
The Germany international has apparently been blowing away Arsenal rehab staff with his recovery and is fighting to be fully match fit ahead of schedule, according to insider HandOfArsenal.
Now, as per GiveMeSport, nearly the exact same can be said of Madueke too.
Arsenal staff taken aback as Noni Madueke nears faster injury return
According to their information, Arsenal staff have been left impressed by Madueke’s attitude during recovery, and the England international winger is now set to return to training earlier than anticipated.
Madueke is said to be making “faster-than-expected” progress in his comeback from a knee injury which has kept him out since Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Man City.
The former PSV Eindhoven star, known for his pace, dribbling, and creativity, has been a bright prospect since joining Arsenal, and his return is expected to inject more flair and unpredictability into their front line.
Madueke’s ability to wreak havoc on defenders in one-on-one situations offers a new dimension, but also takes some pressure off Arsenal’s key forwards, with Arteta pretty light in that area right now.
His form right after joining Arsenal in the summer, despite early protests over his arrival, resulted in Madueke being considered as Andrea Berta’s arguable best signing of the window thus far.
“I would ask about Madueke because, I’ll be honest with you, when Arsenal signed him, I’d seen him play quite a lot at Chelsea,” Gary Neville said on the Stick to Football podcast in September.
“I thought, I can see why Chelsea sort of let him go.
“I tell you – what a different player at Arsenal, and in the England games in the last few weeks.”
Arsenal’s plan is for the 23-year-old to complete several controlled sessions before resuming full contact training, and he’s apparently used the time to work on other aspects of his game, like strength and conditioning.
His response to the setback has been nothing short of incredible, according to GMS, and Arteta will certainly be impressed behind-closed-doors.
