Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Arsenal plan to take a new team photograph including William Saliba, after the defender was left out of the official 2026/27 picture published this week. Arsenal supporters were baffled by the omission, which the club attributed to Saliba being unavailable due to a medical appointment.
Arteta explained that the club had tried to take the picture three times before and had to cancel at the last minute for different reasons. He said commercial obligations and people who had flown in led the club to go ahead with the photo, adding that a further picture with the whole family is planned. Asked to confirm the retake, Arteta said "yes" and insisted Saliba was "completely fine" about the situation, describing him as happy about everything and aware of how loved he is.
Saliba has yet to play this season because of a back injury, though the 25-year-old has made 184 appearances for the club. He resumed training on the grass earlier this month, and Arteta said he is progressing positively, with an MRI scan scheduled for next week. "Every sign so far has been very, very positive," he said.
Arteta also confirmed that Martin Zubimendi is in contention to return against Nottingham Forest after an injury in the warm-down following the Leeds game. Piero Hincapie will be out for another one or two weeks, while Christos Tzolis is recovering from a hamstring injury suffered on international duty with Greece and underwent an MRI scan on Thursday.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing