Arsenal are facing a challenging situation ahead of their Champions League clash against Monaco, with multiple key players unavailable due to injuries. The Gunners are currently seventh in their group stage table and are within reach of securing a spot in the last 16 stage with three wins from five matches, including a 5-1 victory over Sporting Lisbon in their last outing.
However, the injury list has only gotten longer just over 24 hours before the match. Football.london reporter Kaya Kaynak revealed that midfielder Thomas Partey did not participate in training on Monday. Additionally, the defensive quartet of Gabriel Magalhaes, Riccardo Calafiori, Oleksandr Zinchenko, and Jurrien Timber were all absent from full training sessions ahead of the game. Timber and Partey, who started in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Fulham, are major concerns, and Gabriel, Calafiori, and Zinchenko are also missing.
Arsenal already have Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu on the treatment table, meaning they could be without seven players in total—most of whom are defenders or have regularly played in defensive roles this season. If all these players remain sidelined, Mikel Arteta would be left with only William Saliba and Jakub Kiwior as senior defenders.
Despite the injury crisis, Arteta remains hopeful that Gabriel, Calafiori, and Zinchenko—who do not have serious injuries—might be able to return for the Monaco clash. Speaking after the 1-1 draw at Fulham, Arteta stated, “I hope they can [return]. But it’s more a question for the doctors and the physios to understand where we are. We are missing a lot of players in the backline, but the good thing is that whatever we put there, they respond with a good attitude and performance.”