Arsenal news: Emile Smith Rowe among injured quartet to miss Europa League clash with FC Zurich
- Seb Sternik
- 7 September 2022
Arsenal will be without four players for their opening Europa League group stage match away against FC Zurich.
Central midfield duo Thomas Partey (thigh) and Mohamed Elneny (hamstring) are out. Meanwhile, Reiss Nelson (thigh) is still missing and Emile Smith Rowe (muscular) had a setback over the weekend.
When asked about Smith Rowe in his pre-match press conference, Arteta revealed that the player felt discomfort following Sunday's defeat at Manchester United.
The Spaniard said: "He felt discomfort in an area that [he's been dealing with] now for a few weeks.
"He wasn't comfortable after the game and he hasn't trained in the last few days, so he's out of the squad."
Despite being low on numbers, Arteta is confident his men can make a winning start to their Europa League campaign.
He added: "We don't have that many players available, unfortunately, with injuries we've picked up in the last two weeks.
"This is a competition that we want to take very seriously, against an opponent that is going to make life difficult for us. We want to start the competition the right way and maintain our momentum."
Arteta was also questioned about Bukayo Saka's fitness and potential playing time considering the World Cup is just two months away.
The manager said: "We will try - if the squad and performances allow us, we'll try our best to manage his load and get him on the field in the best possible condition. After November we have something that we have never experienced before."
