Mikel Arteta has confirmed that young Arsenal winger Marquinhos has not travelled with the rest of the squad to PSV.
Arsenal face off against the Dutch club on Thursday evening in the .
In more positive news for Gunners fans there are no new injury problems for the side as Arteta explained in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday: ‘We had Marquinhos who wasn’t feeling well today and didn’t travel. For the rest we are OK.’
and Mohamed Elneny remain long term absentees, while Oleksandr Zinchenko will also miss out with a calf problem though he could return soon.
Arsenal’s place in the Europa League knockouts is already booked after four wins from four and they can seal top spot in the group as long as they avoid defeat to PSV.
Winning their group is more important than ever, as it will send them straight to the round of 16, while group runners-up will have to contest a play-off round with the third-placed finishers from the Champions League groups.
This means they could avoid playing a European giant like Barcelona or Juventus.
It is a great shame for Marquinhos that he is unable to play PSV, as the 19-year-old has scarcely featured for Arteta’s side since his summer move from Sao Paulo.
The Brazilian has almost exclusively played in Europe this season, though he did score and assist on his debut against FC Zurich back in September.
As for who could start in his place on the right-wing, Bukayo Saka is the obvious choice though Arteta may be inclined to rest his talisman and select the under-utilised Reiss Nelson instead.
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