This archive report was first published on 11 August 2019.
On Sunday, Arsenal will face Newcastle in their Premier League opener, but the Gunners may be severely depleted. According to a recent statement from the club, up to 12 players will be absent due to security incidents and injuries.
Among those missing are new signings Kieran Tierney, Dani Ceballos, David Luiz, and Nicolas Pepe, who are all dealing with various fitness issues. Alexandre Lacazette has returned to training after an ankle injury but may still be absent, along with Konstantinos Mavropanos, Emile Smith Rowe, Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding, and Mohamed Elneny.
Meanwhile, Newcastle midfielder Matt Ritchie is expected to be available, provided he does not suffer a reaction to his return to training after a hamstring injury. However, full-back DeAndre Yedlin and striker Dwight Gayle remain on the sidelines due to groin and calf injuries, respectively.
Newcastle's head coach Steve Bruce may hand competitive debuts to summer signings Joelinton, Allan Saint-Maximin, and Jetro Willems, but full-back Emil Krafth only trained with the squad for the first time on Friday, and fellow deadline-day acquisition Andy Carroll is lacking match fitness.
Published on August 11, 2019.
