Mikel Arteta on Kai Havertz’s fitness, Ben White’s return, Raheem Sterling and transfers
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the media ahead of Saturday’s trip to Brighton in the Premier League.
The Gunners boss gave fitness updates on several players, including Kai Havertz, who missed the New Year’s Day clash at Brentford due to a sickness bug that was going round the squad.
Arteta also answered questions on the January transfer window and Ethan Nwaneri, who performed so impressively at Brentford on what was his first ever Premier League start.
Here is a selection of what he had to say.
On if Kai Havertz will be fit to face Brighton:
“Yes, I think so. The ones with the illness I think they will be OK. Hopefully. They will train today and if everybody is fine they should be available.”
On Raheem Sterling:
“I think he is starting to do some stuff on the pitch, that’s great news. As quick as possible we want him available. Let’s see how he progresses next week and see if we can get him available for the following week.”
On Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu:
“Ben still a few weeks away. Tomi has done some stuff on the pitch but it’s been a long term injury and we need to see how quickly he can progress and how he reacts. But hopefully good.”
On whether White could return by the end of the month:
“It might be a possibility, but obviously he hasn’t done anything yet with the team. The knee looks good, he’s reacted really well in the first few weeks. Everything is going smoothly, and now he needs to start to load that knee and get through many more things that, up to now, he hasn’t been able to do. Hopefully, he’s good. His work ethic is unbelievable. Naturally, he’s a really gifted player.”
On having to manage Declan Rice’s minutes:
“Yes. On his case especially he has played so much football. We have nine games in this month and he has had some niggles in the last few games, he’s had to come off. We have to manage every player and he is not an exception for sure.”
On whether Ethan Nwaneri is the most natural replacement for Bukayo Saka:
“He’s a player who can play in various positions. It’s not a position he’s played a lot to be fair, even at academy level, by he can adapt for the demands we have in two or three positions and I think he did really well there.”
On the January transfer window:
“The focus is with the players we have. If something extraordinary is in the market that we can afford, and we believe can have a real impact on the team, we have to be open to that possibility always because that’s why we have the ability to improve the squad in the windows, but at the moment the focus is on what we have.”