Arsenal fans are confident Declan Rice will be back from injury to play against Chelsea on Sunday after club legend Paul Merson posted a picture with the midfielder on his X account.
The England international missed Wednesday’s controversial 1-0 defeat against Inter on Wednesday amid reports he had broken a toe.
Rice is understood to be willing to play through the pain barrier, but manager Mikel Arteta was giving nothing away during Friday’s pre-match press conference and remained typically coy.
Asked for an update on the club-record signing, Arteta said: ‘I have to be very vague on that one because there’s no clarity on whether he’s going to be fit for the weekend.
‘[Whether he has a broken toe is] for the doctor, what I can say is that he hasn’t trained yet and it is not clear whether he’s going to be available or not to play.’
Merson, meanwhile, was back at his old stomping ground yesterday, interviewing Arteta and Rice for features that will go out on Sky Sports over the course of the weekend.
Eagle-eyed supporters noticed Rice was wearing conventional shoes in the picture uploaded by Merson but fans were all still keen for an update on his supposedly damaged digit.
Rice is not the only doubt for Arsenal ahead of a game they cannot afford to lose having already surrendered ground in the race for the title.
Arteta did appear a little more hopeful on the prospect of Kai Havertz and Mikel Merino being able to feature against Chelsea after both failed to complete 90 minutes in midweek.
He added: ‘[We have to] wait to see how they react. Kai’s was quite a nasty cut. Mikel wasn’t feeling great and we decided to substitute him at half-time.’
Arsenal were at least boosted on Wednesday by the sight of Martin Odegaard making a return as a late substitute.
The club skipper had missed 12 games since he damaged ankle ligaments playing for his country in September but Arteta will hope Odegaard’s comeback can coincide with an upturn in results.
‘Everybody that is in the squad will be fit and available to start the game,’ said Arteta when asked if Odegaard was ready to start. ‘Then it is a decision to see if it is too early.’
‘It’s about the collective and everybody taking ownership,’ he added. ‘Certainly having a player like Martin helps because he has shown what an impact he has over the last four, five years.
‘Let’s see how he goes, how he trains tomorrow. He’s available, he’s fit, then we make the decision.
‘He’s always very close and active with the team. He knows his role and responsibility. It is different but the team had no issues at all.’
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