Arsenal to face Hull City with only two absentees this weekend
Arsenal head into Saturday's Premier League clash with Hull City in far better shape than their visitors, with just two players unavailable compared to seven for Sergej Jakirovic's side.
Mikel Arteta opted against resting as many starters as some had expected for the midweek Champions League trip to Slavia Prague. Declan Rice, who admitted after the win at Anfield that he could do with a couple of days' sleep, still started in Czechia. William Saliba also returned to the squad and made the bench, leaving Bukayo Saka as the only player missing through injury.
The Friday Injury Tracker
Who's out, who's back and what it means for the next two games.
Max Dowman is the other absentee for Arsenal, serving the second match of his three game suspension. The ban only applies to domestic fixtures, which is why the young forward was still eligible to feature against Slavia Prague in midweek. His suspension will be completed after the international break, when Arsenal travel to face Newcastle United.
Hull's lengthy absentee list
Hull City, by contrast, are set to be without seven players for the trip to the Emirates, according to football.london. Summer signing Jack Butland could be available again having missed the entire season so far through injury, with the goalkeeper having played a full 90 minutes for the club's under-21s in a 1-0 win over Derby on Monday. However, with 23 year old Konstantinos Tzolakis having impressed as first choice, Butland returning to fitness is unlikely to be enough to displace him for the visit to north London.
Hull's longer term absentees include Eliot Matazo and Matt Targett, while Matt Crooks will serve a one match suspension after collecting five yellow cards in just six Premier League appearances. Charlie Hughes (groin), Darko Gyabi (groin), Ilyas Ansah (back) and Lucas Gourna-Douath (calf) are also expected to miss out, barring a surprise recovery.
What it means for Arsenal
With Saliba back amongst the matchday squad and the rest of the first team squad largely available, Arteta has close to a full hand to choose from for a side chasing a ninth win from their opening ten Premier League games. Saka remains the notable miss, while Dowman's suspension is a squad rather than first team concern given his usage so far this season.
Arteta is expected to provide the latest team news at his press conference on Friday ahead of kick off. A win on Saturday would keep Arsenal at the top of the Premier League table heading into the international break.
