Arsenal: Injured trio set to return for Premier League opener after missing friendly

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Evening Standard

·6 août 2025

Arsenal: Injured trio set to return for Premier League opener after missing friendly

The Gunners have lost two on the spin but will soon be boosted by some returnees

On the mend: Kai Havertz and Riccardo Calafiori are due back soon

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Mikel Arteta is confident Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard and Riccardo Calafiori will all be fit for the start of the Premier League season next week.

The trio were absent from the Arsenal squad on Wednesday evening, as the Gunners lost 3-2 to Villarreal in a friendly at Emirates Stadium.

Havertz pulled out of the squad on the morning of the game due to a muscular issue picked up in training on Tuesday.

Trossard has not played since injuring his groin in a defeat to Tottenham last week, while Calafiori has been struggling with a knee issue.

Arteta, however, is confident the trio will all be fit for Arsenal’s opening Premier League game at Old Trafford next week - and they could even feature in Saturday’s friendly against Athletic Bilbao at the Emirates Stadium.

“Yesterday in training, he (Havertz) felt something and this morning he wasn’t quite right,” said Arteta.

“So we decided to rest him. I think it’s going to be a matter of a couple of days, hopefully at the weekend, if everything goes to plan, I think he will be fit.

“The three that we lost during the tour, it was Big Gabi, Leo and Ricky, and for Saturday, I think both of them (Calafiori and Trossard) have a chance if everything in the next few days evolves in the way it has been evolving in the last few days.”