Mikel Arteta has provided an update on Takehiro Tomiyasu after the Arsenal defender appeared to pick up an injury against FC Zurich on Thursday night.
The Gunners secured top spot of Group A with a 1-0 win over the Swiss side at the Emirates Stadium. A first half Kieran Tierney strike was enough for Mikel Arteta’s side to avoid a potentially tricky knockout round play-off tie.
However, despite the victory, Tomiyasu appeared to pick up an injury in the second half of the contest a short while after coming on for Ben White. Speaking after the match, Arteta told football.london that the defender was taken off because he “felt something”.
Elaborating further to BT Sport, the Spaniard said: “We don’t know. He has had a muscular issue and had to come off because we don’t want to take any risks. But we will assess him in the next 48 hours and decide what is best to do next.”
Arteta now faces a nervy wait to see if Tomiyasu will be fit for Arsenal’s Premier League clash against Chelsea on Sunday. If the Japanese international is ruled out, Tierney could retain his place.
The Scotsman impressed against FC Zurich and delighted Arteta with his performance. “He was really good,” the Arsenal boss said.
“Kieran has shown a real maturity and he has respect for certain decisions and he has not played a lot of minutes. He played very well today and scored a great goal that helped us win the game, and that is what we demand from all the players to be ready when we need them to make a difference.”
