Mikel Arteta allayed fears over the long absence of Raheem Sterling, who has been suffering from a knee injury infection.
Sterling went down in training at around the same time as fellow winger Bukayo Saka suffered a hamstring injury, which the coach revealed would happen. Keep him out of action for at least two monthsWhich raised concerns about the options available to Arteta.
While the news surrounding Saka's injury has been mostly negative, there has been some optimism surrounding Sterling's condition.
“I think the news with Raz is better,” Arteta told the media. “We probably expected the knee injury to take longer than it has developed in the past few days.
“I hope this is good news, because we need him.”
Sterling's imminent return to fitness will boost Arteta's attempts to adapt without Saka. It was Gabriel Martinelli who started on the right On Friday, they beat Ipswich Town 1-0But he failed to attract the attention of the attacking trio, which also included Gabriel Jesus and Leandro Trossard.
After the match, Arteta backed his side to successfully overcome Saka's absence, and the good news on Sterling's condition will only serve to bolster their efforts.
