Injury update on Trossard, Saliba and Calafiori | News

Mikel Arteta hopes to be able to call upon the services of Leandro Trossard and Riccardo Calafiori against Bayer Leverkusen tomorrow after they travelled to Germany for our Champions League round of 16 tie.

The duo both came off injured during our FA Cup fifth round success at Mansfield Town on Saturday but were involved during training ahead of our flight to the continent, and the boss will see how they fare in the lead-up to the first leg at the BayArena on Wednesday.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Mikel revealed: “Those two are a possibility that they are available, and we’ll see tomorrow.”

While Mikel also confirmed that William Saliba is fine to return from the ankle injury that has hampered him over the past week, while Gabriel, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi will also return after being rested on the weekend. However Martin Odegaard remains out.

Another player that the boss will be able to call upon is Kai Havertz, who is returning to the club where it all started for him as a boy for the first time.

The German striker has dealt with his fair share of injuries over the past year, and Mikel is delighted to see him back in red and white again and have the opportunity to return to a place so close to his heart.

“He spent 10 incredible years here. The way he talks about the club, the people here, the culture, what he’s learned and how hard this journey was for him to continue his next chapter in England. I’m glad to see how people are receiving him the moment he’s walking around the building, and I’m not surprised.

“Now it’s been three weeks that he’s had total consistency in terms of training, preparation and gametime, and we’re going to continue to roll that because we know how Kai can impact this team.

“It’s been something new for him. When you look at his injury record, it’s just blank. He never had a muscle injury and last year he had his hamstring injury that required surgery and then the knee injury, so it’s been a tough period. But as well a lot of great things happened in his private life as well.

“When you talk about a 15-20 year career, you’re going to have to go unfortunately, most likely, through these moments. If there is a person that has the right combination of humbleness, patience and love for the game and a competitive edge, that’s certain Kai. He had difficult moments but that’s why we are here and all his teammates and family are there. Now he needs to really enjoy all the work that he’s put in to see the results at the end of the season.”