Arsenal returned to England from their Asian pre-season tour for their first session back on home soil. The side have less than two weeks to get ready for the start of the Premier League season when they take on Manchester United at Old Trafford.
The Gunners have enjoyed a solid summer so far, with six new signings brought in by sporting director Andrea Berta. Mikel Arteta has the job now of gelling everything together and working out who his best team will be.
On the official Arsenal website, the club released images from the session which has given some insight into the state of the squad. From first sightings of a new signing to Viktor Gyokeres giving us a hint as to his preferred number and of course broad updates on injuries.
Injury hints
The biggest inclusion of the session was certainly that of Gabriel Magalhaes who has been missing for some time after suffering a setback in recovery while in Asia. He joined Jurrien Timber, who was also absent for the three games in Singapore in Hong Kong, and so to see both involved is a big boost.
Another boost was the inclusion of goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, who has recovered after he suffered an issue between the Newcastle and Tottenham matches. However, there was no sight of Leandro Trossard or Riccardo Calafiori, who both suffered problems while away with the team.
And still no sign of Fabio Vieira, either. The Portuguese midfielder is believed to be in talks over a potential exit with Stuttgart interested.
Viktor Gyokeres
When Arsenal signed their new Swedish centre-forward, the club already had a No.9. Gabriel Jesus, who has been missing since the start of the year with a serious knee problem, currently holds that shirt.
Because of this, Gyokeres was forced to choose another number and, in so doing, picked an iconic one in the form of the No.14. That being said, when pictured in training, Gyokeres could be seen with the No.9 bib on during a drill – perhaps no surprise that when given the chance, he went for his preferred digit.
Noni Madueke included
Arsenal fans are still craving new signings and while the likes of Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard were involved alongside Cristhian Mosquera, there was another new member of the group spotted with the team for the first time. Noni Madueke was involved in the drills after cutting short his summer break.
Entitled to an extended holiday after his involvement in the Club World Cup, Madueke is understood to have taken the decision to return early and join preparations. This will come as a big boost to Mikel Arteta and he could give the winger an unofficial debut in the two friendlies against Athletic Club and Villarreal this week.
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