Arsenal Injury News: Who Arteta Can Pick Against Leeds

Arsenal Injuries - News Summary

• Christos Tzolis and Kai Havertz both picked up hamstring injuries on international duty.
• Tzolis is set to miss about three weeks, with Everton on 24 October his likely return.
• Captain Martin Odegaard has shaken off his ankle problem, and Declan Rice is expected to start.
• Ben White, Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera are back in training and should be available.
• William Saliba is targeting a December return from his back injury.

The latest Arsenal injury news reads like a ledger with entries in both columns, and Mikel Arteta will want to study it closely before Leeds arrive at the Emirates for Saturday's lunchtime kick-off.

On the credit side, captain Martin Odegaard has shaken off an ankle complaint, and a cluster of defenders who missed recent weeks are back in training at London Colney.

On the debit side, two attacking players have joined the treatment room in the space of a single international window.

Christos Tzolis and Kai Havertz both limped out of fixtures against the Netherlands with separate muscle problems, leaving Arteta to recalibrate his options just as the Premier League resumes.

The timing is awkward because this was an extended three-week break, the kind that usually hands a manager a clean bill of health.

Instead, Arsenal came through it bruised, with Declan Rice pulled early for rest and defender Ezri Konsa sent home for assessment. The good news and the bad news, it seems, arrived in roughly equal measure.

Tzolis Timeline Explained

Tzolis had a goal chalked off early in Greece's 2-2 draw with the Netherlands in Thessaloniki, then went down clutching the back of his leg soon after.

According to his national coach Ivan Jovanovic, the winger initially refused to leave the pitch and covered his face with his shirt before accepting he could not continue.

He was replaced in the 18th minute by Giorgos Masouras and ruled out of Greece's following game against Germany.

Tzolis is reported to have undergone a scan before returning to North London, and early assessments suggest a hamstring issue that could keep him out for roughly three weeks.

If that estimate holds, the 24-year-old would miss the visit of Leeds along with the Champions League visit of Lille and matches against Nottingham Forest and Bayern Munich.

A realistic comeback, on current reporting, points to the home fixture with Everton on 24 October, ahead of a Carabao Cup tie at fourth-tier Fleetwood and a daunting afternoon at Anfield.

Havertz Leaves Arteta Guessing

Havertz had already suffered his own setback a week earlier, hurting his left hamstring after a heavy challenge from Quinten Timber, the brother of his Arsenal teammate Jurrien Timber.

Havertz received treatment on the pitch before being withdrawn around the half-hour mark of Germany's 1-1 draw.

The Germany forward, who left Jurgen Klopp's squad early, has since been scanned by Arsenal's medical staff. The results were not immediately clear, though the early mood music suggests he has avoided anything serious, with any absence expected to run to weeks rather than months.

Konsa, meanwhile, remains a question mark after a minor knock he was already managing when he started against Spain at Wembley.

He missed training and sat out the game in Prague, returned to play the full 90 minutes of England's 7-0 rout of Croatia and completed full training afterwards, but was then released from the squad for further assessment.

Saliba Return Date Still Unclear

William Saliba is the longer-running concern, the France defender having not featured for Arsenal this season because of a back injury he aggravated at the World Cup over the Australian winter. He avoided surgery, but Arteta has offered no firm timeline.

More recent reports from France suggest Saliba is running again after a positive scan and is targeting a December return, with November floated as a possibility.

That partly explains why Arsenal have been so cautious elsewhere, treating Rice's withdrawal as load management for a player carrying long-term neural hamstring pain rather than any fresh Declan Rice injury worth panicking over.

For Saturday, the Arsenal injury news picture is brighter than it first appears. Rice is expected to start, while Ben White, Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera have all returned to training and should be available, restoring depth after a spate of defensive knocks.

Beyond that, Havertz's scan results and Saliba's December target remain the two fitness dates Arsenal supporters will watch most closely. With the fitness picture clearing, see how it shapes the Leeds clash in our EPL predictions before you weigh up a bet.