William Saliba absence explained by Mikel Arteta as Arsenal without two defensive stars

View 2 Images

Mikel Arteta confirmed that William Saliba had an issue in training which left him "uncomfortable" and has forced him to miss Arsenal's clash with Chelsea .

The Frenchman has been a linchpin of the team's defence but will be absent for the titanic clash in London - which comes after Arteta also lost Gabriel to an injury issue . Together Saliba and Gabriel have formed one of Europe's best centre-half partnerships.

With both men now missing the Arsenal boss has turned to two summer signings in Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera with the pair partnering up at the heart of defence.

Arteta believes Saliba's issue is not serious, but it was enough to see him miss out on Sunday. He said: “Yesterday in training he was uncomfortable, so we need to explore a little bit more what happened. I don’t think it’s something major, but enough not to be involved in the game.”

Jurrien Timber provides some continuity with the Dutchman, who has been one of the most impressive full-backs in the Premier League , continuing in the back four. He scored in midweek against Bayern Munich with Riccardo Calafiori also coming in to complete the defensive line.

Arsenal, having underlined their European credentials in midweek, start with the likes of Bukayo Saka , Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Martinelli in their frontline. Chelsea came into the weekend as the Gunners' closest challengers, but were overtaken on Saturday.

The Blues can close to within three points of Arsenal if they do beat them at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have only won three of their six home games this term but Arteta is expecting a stern test.

He said: "It’s a big game, it’s a big London derby, we’re going to play a really good opponent, and they are in really good form. We know the challenge, we know the opportunity that we have as well on Sunday, so we are fully prepared for it."

View 2 Images

Arteta is eyeing another win to underline Arsenal's ambitions after beating Bayern and Tottenham this past week. "Those are statements that we are talking about every three days," he said. "After beating Spurs at home, then we have to make a statement against Bayern Munich, we’ve done that and now we have to go to the next one.

"That’s where we are, we knew the importance of the week, not only that, but what is coming after three days is going to be exactly the same, nothing is going to change. But we are super motivated for the game."

Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.