Arsenal training offers huge injury hint after Mikel Arteta admitted concern

Arsenal have been training on Monday afternoon, ahead of their Champions League clash with Inter Milan at the San Siro on Tuesday night.

Bukayo Saka has been seen in training ahead of Arsenal's UEFA Champions League showdown with Inter Milan. The two football powerhouses will face off at the San Siro on Tuesday night, each vying for a guaranteed spot in the knockout stages.

Arsenal have come out victorious in all six of their 'league phase' matches, maintaining an unbeaten record. Meanwhile, Inter sit sixth in the table, trailing Arsenal by six points and coming off the back of two consecutive losses in the competition.

Atletico Madrid's Jose Maria Gimenez snatched a last-minute victory against the Italian side in November, followed by Dominik Szoboszlai scoring a late penalty for Liverpool in December. Arteta will be keen to add to Inter's woes and keep Arsenal firmly at the top of the table.

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However, following Sunday evening's goalless draw against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground, Arteta hinted that Saka might not feature in the crucial clash. The 24 year old winger has been dealing with a minor injury, according to the Spanish manager.

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"Bukayo had a lot of minutes and he had a niggle before the game so we need to manage our players," the Arsenal boss explained. "We have some fantastic players that can provide different things and we did try [to swap the wide-men] from the beginning.

"We tried after half-time as well, taking more risks and bringing in even more players in those attacking options. We tried in every way and it wasn't enough unfortunately."

At the weekend, Saka came on for Noni Madueke just before the hour mark as Arteta pushed for a late winner. Arsenal looked far sharper with the Hale End academy graduate on the right flank, who almost gave the visitors the lead with a looping header.

Despite worries that Saka might miss the Inter clash, he took part in first-team training at the Sobha Realty Centre as usual on Monday afternoon. The England star didn't feature from the start in the Gunners' previous Champions League fixture, instead coming off the bench during a 3-0 away triumph over Club Brugge.

However, he did start the three matches before that, wearing the captain's armband as Arsenal secured wins against Bayern Munich, Slavia Praha, and Atletico Madrid. Back in October, Arteta insisted his squad's improved depth puts them in a stronger position to compete throughout the Champions League campaign.

The north London club made it to the semi-finals last season before being knocked out by eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain. The Arsenal manager said: "With all respect, last season we were looking (at the bench) and we had five academy players there, that probably never played professional football in the Champions League, so it makes a difference.

"We decided to change six players because I want everybody to really be involved and feel part of it, and it was great," Arteta elaborated.

"The ones that came in again, they lifted the level, and they helped us to win the game, and that's great."

He further added: "They know that they have a chance to play, to maybe make six changes and I want everybody to be a big part of that.

"The players came in as well to help the team when we were still lacking a bit of rhythm and needed to re-energise. Declan [Rice] comes in, Ebz [Eze], Bukayo, [Cristhian] Mosquera, Jurrien [Timber] - anybody that comes in and brings another dimension to the team."