Mikel Arteta Addresses Arsenal Injuries, Tierney’s Return, and Jesus’s Status Ahead of Champions League Match

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta addressed reporters in advance of Wednesday’s Champions League fixture against Monaco, scheduled for an 20:00 kick-off. The following are the principal points from his press briefing: Arteta stated that final decisions regarding player availability would be made close to the match, acknowledging that “some of them will not be fit and available.” He characterized the current injury status by saying it “is what it is,” further emphasizing, “We have to accept reality and move forwards.” Addressing the recurring nature of these injury problems, Arteta explained: “It is a knock-on. We have lots of joint injuries which are very difficult to predict ourselves. We have some through tackles which are difficult to avoid. Then other ones from overload and knock-on affect of having one or two players not available means you put more strain and minutes on someone else. That is not a good change.” The manager of Arsenal expressed that he is “really pleased” with the team’s current performance level. Regarding lessons drawn from their Champions League campaigns this season and last, he commented: “We have to do a lot of things we do in the Premier League. The tendency is to look at the Champions League like it is something else. We face incredibly difficult opposition every week. That is the good thing. When we come up against a team like Monaco, who have done incredibly well, we are so used to it because we play every three days against this kind of opponent.” Arteta confirmed that left-back Kiernan Tierney “is ready” to rejoin the squad, stating: “He is training really well. He’s going to have opportunity for sure with the way the team is looking. He is going to do that for a reason as well because he has earned it. The way he has behaved, has been with us, he is willing to do it.” He noted that Gabriel Jesus’ “attitude is really good – it always is,” even though the forward has only scored once in 31 matches. When questioned about speculation concerning the Brazil international’s potential departure in January, Arteta dismissed it, responding: “No, nonsense.” Addressing concerns about the team’s ability to create scoring opportunities outside of set-pieces, Arteta remarked: “We always want to create more from every angle. Set-pieces are a consequence of what we do. That phase [open play] is a part of that. Open play and set-pieces are all together.”