Arsenal will look to go one better than last season’s final appearance and win the UEFA Champions League this season, but it will not be a given like many are calling their Premier League title defence.
While they may be the best team in England, competing in Europe is no small task, and having one of last season’s standout names unavailable is already a hindrance. Spanish centre-back Cristhian Mosquera will not be ready to play in Mikel Arteta’s XI for the season opener away at Napoli, as injury continues to rule him out.
Forced off during Arsenal’s narrow win over Aston Villa, Mosquera was absent from the following league game, a victory against Chelsea. After that match, Arteta provided an update on the situation: “Yeah, so we had a muscular issue and we think it’s not too much but we need to wait and see in the next few days how this evolves.”
Mosquera had started the season in the starting XI, playing alongside Gabriel in Saliba’s absence. Since his injury, Ezri Konsa has been signed by the London club.
On a more positive note, Jurrien Timber returned to training after being out since the start of the year with a groin injury forcing him to undergo surgery.
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