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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided an injury update on his squad ahead of their upcoming UEFA Europa League clash against PSV Eindhoven. The Gunners will travel to the Philips Stadium on Thursday, October 27.
Arteta's side have a 100% record in the Europa League so far and are leading Group A with four wins from as many matches. A win against Ruud van Nistelrooy's side in Eindhoven will seal the top spot for them and direct passage into the Round of 16.
Ahead of the encounter, the Spanish tactician gave an injury update on his squad. He confirmed that summer signing Marquinhos hasn't traveled to the Netherlands and will miss the match. The rest of the squad is available for selection.
"We had Marquinhos who wasn’t feeling well today and didn’t travel. For the rest, we are OK," Arteta said in a pre-match press conference (via football.london).
Winger Marquinhos joined Arsenal in a €3.50 million move from Brazilian side Sau Paulo this summer. The 19-year-old has made four appearances for the club's senior side so far, scoring and assisting a goal each.
Arteta was also quizzed about picking more or less the same team for every encounter and whether it would lead to fatigue as the season progresses. The Spanish tactician replied:
"We don’t have that many players. Even the players that we have, we are bringing four kids with us so we can make the squad. We need to put 11 players there and they have to play. We cannot always change 10, 11 players every game."
"This competition is getting harder and harder" - Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta on UEFA Europa League
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta also stressed that the UEFA Europa League is getting tougher now. Some top teams have been relegated from the UEFA Champions League after finishing third in their respective groups this season.
Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Juventus and AFC Ajax are all set to be a part of the Europa League knockouts and some other sides could join them as well.
"This competition is getting harder and harder and I think, as you mentioned, how it looks today and what the possibilities are it looks like the next round is going to be extremely competitive, that's why finishing first in the group and avoiding another two games is such an important thing for us."
Arsenal notably won the reverse fixture against PSV Eindhoven 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium on October 20.
