Mikel Arteta Offers Surprise Ethan Nwaneri Arsenal Injury Update

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Arsenal injury news as Ethan Nwaneri may return earlier than expected after positive update from Mikel Arteta.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided a positive update on Ethan Nwaneri, the young attacking midfielder who has been sidelined with a muscle injury since the start of the month. Initially expected to be out for several weeks, Nwaneri is now making a quicker-than-anticipated recovery.

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Arteta revealed that Nwaneri has already started doing some work on the training pitch and is progressing well. “He is good,” Arteta said. “He has started to do some work on the pitch already. He is evolving well, he is young, he is healing very, very fast so hopefully we can have him soon.”

The 17-year-old had been playing an increasingly prominent role in the squad, stepping up to fill the void left by injured players like Bukayo Saka. Nwaneri even scored his second Premier League goal of the season before being substituted at half-time during Arsenal’s draw at Brighton.

While Nwaneri is not expected to be back for Wednesday’s North London Derby against Tottenham, Arteta’s update suggests that the young talent could return later this month. This news comes as a welcome boost for Arsenal, who have been hit hard by injuries this season.

Arteta also mentioned that the club is actively looking to bolster the squad in the January transfer window to address their injury woes. “We are actively looking in the market to improve the squad,” Arteta said. “We have been since day one. It would be naïve not to do that because there is always an opportunity to evolve the team and improve the squad.”