Arsenal injury, suspension list and return dates for Bayer Leverkusen: Leandro Trossard, Riccardo Calafiori, William Saliba latest

Mikel Arteta could have several of his regular starters return to contention for Wednesday’s Champions League round-of-16 first-leg clash at Bayer Leverkusen after his heavily rotated Arsenal side managed to grind out a 2–1 victory in Saturday’s FA Cup tie at Mansfield Town.

The quartet of Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Gabriel Magalhaes and David Raya were all rested for the trip to the League One outfit due to fitness concerns, though the Gunners still secured progression to the quarter-finals courtesy of two powerful strikes from Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze either side of Will Evans’s effort.

While teenage sensation Max Dowman made his return from an ankle injury in that encounter, Arteta has now been left with fresh fitness issues after seeing two key players forced off.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up Arsenal’s latest injury and suspension news ahead of their Champions League clash with Leverkusen, with the Gunners still in contention for all four available trophies this season.

Leandro Trossard

Status: Major doubt

Type of injury: Knock

Possible return date: March 11 (vs. Leverkusen)

One of the two casualties from the trip to Mansfield, Leandro Trossard was withdrawn in the 38th minute after feeling a “little niggle”, though the issue does not appear to be serious.

Riccardo Calafiori

Status: Major doubt

Type of injury: Knock

Possible return date: March 11 (vs. Leverkusen)

Riccardo Calafiori has seen his time at Arsenal disrupted by injuries, and his latest setback came in the same encounter at Mansfield, where he was forced off in the 76th minute.

Providing an update after the match, Arteta said the Italian defender was “not comfortable to continue”, and it remains to be seen whether he will be fit enough to make the squad on Wednesday.

William Saliba

Status: Major doubt

Type of injury: Ankle

Possible return date: March 11 (vs. Leverkusen)

William Saliba has missed Arsenal’s last two matches after twisting his ankle in the victory over Chelsea, with Arteta admitting that they will “see if he recovers quickly”.

However, given how cautious the Spanish manager can be with injury updates, there remains a possibility the Frenchman could return for Wednesday’s clash.

Martin Odegaard

Status: Major doubt

Type of injury: Knee

Possible return date: March 22 (vs. Manchester City)

Club captain Martin Odegaard made a brief cameo in the North London derby on February 22 but has since missed three matches with a knee issue, and the Norwegian may not return until later this month.

Ben White

Status: Major doubt

Type of injury: Unspecified

Possible return date: Unknown

After being named as an unused substitute in the draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers on February 18, Ben White has since missed four matches due to injury.

The exact nature of the defender’s problem remains unclear, and it would come as a surprise if he were to feature against Leverkusen.