Arsenal are set to welcome back Gabriel Jesus into their matchday squad for tonight's Premier League clash against Newcastle United (kick-off 8pm).
The Brazilian has missed the last four games with a knee injury and didn’t make the Champions League trip to Porto, where the Gunners lost 1-0 following Galeno's injury time winner.
Jesus hadn't been spotted in training prior to the visit of Newcastle and Mikel Arteta revealed on Friday the 26-year-old had suffered a minor setback, putting his availability in doubt..
Arteta said: "We couldn’t resolve that as quickly as we wanted and he had a small reaction in training again. We didn’t want to take any more risks because he’s been out for quite a while and he’s a player that we need at his best and we decided to give him a few more days."
However, a video circulating on social media shows Jesus with the Arsenal squad, which strongly suggests he'll at least be on the bench this evening.
Arsenal welcomed back Fabio Vieira from a groin injury for their Champions League last 16 first leg defeat to Porto on Wednesday night. Takehiro Tomiyasu, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Thomas Partey could be the next to return.
"Let’s see," Arteta said when asked about Partey. "We have another session today. He’s been out for many, many months now. We need to really nail the timing of when he has enough in the tank to compete. But I think he’s very close."
Here's the early team news from both Arsenal and Newcastle:
1. Sandro Tonali - out
The Italian is banned from football until August following an investigation into illegal betting activity.
2. Joelinton - out
Joelinton underwent surgery on his groin last month and won't return until May the earliest.
3. Nick Pope - out
Newcastle have been without Pope since December after he underwent surgery on a dislocated shoulder.
4. Matt Targett - out
Targett underwent surgery on his hamstring in November. He has returned to training but isn't yet ready for the matchday squad.