Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has now opened up about the details of an injury that has hit his squad in pre-season.
Arsenal are currently in the USA, preparing to face three Premier League opponents in a series of friendly matches. The Gunners will begin in Los Angeles, where they will take on Bournemouth and Manchester United, before moving on to Philadelphia to face Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta is already without a number of his key players. Several Arsenal stars are still enjoying an extended break, having competed in the latter stages of international tournaments earlier this summer.
Due to this, the Spanish coach has taken a somewhat makeshift Arsenal squad to America, featuring a host of youthful prospects called up from the club’s Hale End academy.
The manager has also suffered the further blow of losing Takehiro Tomiyasu to injury. The Japanese defender has remained behind in North London to receive treatment for a knee issue.
Mikel Arteta provides update on Takehiro Tomiyasu injury
Tomiyasu has suffered a litany of fitness issues since his arrival at the Emirates Stadium in the summer of 2021.
Arteta has now expressed his dismay at seeing the 25-year-old break down again. Speaking to the club’s official website, he said: “It is unbelievable, because the kid works so hard. He had an incident in training this week and we don’t know yet the extent of that [knee] injury but as a precaution we kept him [in England]. We’ll see what happens.”
Arteta, and all Arsenal supporters, will be hoping that Tomiyasu’s injury is not so serious on this occasion, and that he will be available for action come the start of the new season.
However, the frequency of the former Bologna man’s fitness issues cannot be ignored. Arsenal fans were wary of Tomiyasu’s injury record when the club offered him a new contract recently, and if the player is to have a long-term future at the club he needs to prove that he can remain fit and available for an extended period.
What must Arsenal do with Tomiyasu after pre-season injury setback?
It is equally true, though, that if he continues to be plagued with such problems as he has been in recent years, then the Gunners will find it extremely difficult to move Tomiyasu on via the transfer market.
Having handed Tomiyasu a new deal, which is not due to expire until the summer of 2026, Arsenal have shackled themselves to the player to some extent.
Clearly, Arteta is not yet ready to give up on Tomiyasu. Certainly, if he can overcome his injury woes, then he has the quality to be a key player for the Gunners.
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