Mikel Arteta reveals whether Gabriel and Saka will play in season opener against Brentford

Arsenal’s match against Brentford will be this year’s Premier League opener and its now just two weeks away and the gunners have now begun preparations for this game as they will want to start off on a winning note. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has spoken out on whether Gabriel Magalhaes and Bukayo Saka will be in the squad that faces the newly promoted side Brentford.

Gabriel Magalhaes was selected as one of the players to represent Brazil at the Olympics but he however got an injury in the preparations hence many fans wanting to know whether he will have recovered by the start of the campaign. Bukayo Saka was selected in the final England squad that played in the The Euros and he made a number of appearances including the heartbreaking final that saw him miss a penalty that won Italy the tournament.

Arsenal faced Chelsea in a friendly on Sunday and Mikel Arteta faced the media after the game, and he was asked about the status of these two players, and he confirmed that it was likely that Gabriel wouldn’t be fit by the time the season kicks off but confirmed that Saka was going to join his teammate in training soon.

“We don’t know [whether he will be available for Brentford]. He’s (Gabriel) still injured. He picked up and injury while he was doing the preparation for the Olympics with Brazil and at the moment he’s not been able to train with us. That seems unlikely at the moment but hopefully he can recover quickly.” Mikel Arteta told Arsenal Player.

“He’s back very soon. He needed some holidays, he needed to be away. He had an incredibly busy year and he will be back with us in the next few days. We’re looking forward to seeing him.” said Mikel Arteta on Saka.