Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will be able to call upon Ben White and Thomas Partey for Wednesday’s Champions League game away to Real Madrid. The news on Jorginho is less positive, though, with the Italian midfielder ruled out through injury.
“The positive one, Ben White managed to train with us,” Arteta told reporters. “Yeah [Thomas] is available. He felt good after the last few days and he’s fine.”
Arteta also confirmed Jorginho was “not here” for the game in Spain. The former Chelsea star was injured late on against Brentford on Saturday and left unable to breathe, according to the manager, and he joins the likes of Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus on the sidelines.
“He said he could not breathe properly so it might be to do with one of the ribs,” the Arsenal boss said after the weekend game. “It is strange because Jorgi normally carries on so that means it is something significant I think.”
Partey was also withdrawn against Brentford, with the boss saying Arsenal “didn’t want to take any risks,” while White missed the game entirely. However, both are available on Wednesday.
Arsenal claimed a momentous 3-0 win in the first leg, with Declan Rice scoring twice from direct free-kicks and Mikel Merino adding a third. The tie isn’t over, though, with Arsenal chasing a first run to the semis of the competition in more than a decade.
“I think it is exciting, the history yes, we have never won the competition,” he said. “We are trying to do something now where we can dominate the European competition.”
Arteta was also full of praise for midfielder Rice, the hero of the first-leg win. The 26-year-old has already won one European trophy, captaining West Ham to Conference League glory in 2023, and now has the chance to add another.
“I think he’s creating a story with us, that moment will be in our history for a while,” Arteta said. “It is about creating more and I think he is going to have to believe he is capable of creating those moments.”
Real Madrid have never come back from a 3-0 first leg deficit in Europe but have delivered momentous comebacks in recent years. Last season, they trailed in their semi-final against Bayern Munich with just two minutes remaining, only for super-sub Joselu to send them through with a quickfire brace.
”It is something that you want to be a part of, it is something that you want to add to the history of this club,” Madrid and England star Jude Bellingham said on Tuesday ahead of the Arsenal return leg. “There is not a lot you can do for Real Madrid in the Champions League that has not already been done. Tomorrow is an opportunity for us to do something that has not been done for the first time and that is really important to us.”
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