Injured Arsenal star returns to training; could make matchday squad against Newcastle United - Reports

Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey has returned to training and can reportedly feature in their clash against Newcastle United on Saturday, February 24.

The Gunners are set to host the Magpies at the Emirates in the Premier League. Ahead of the game, Partey has returned to training and could even make the matchday squad, as per Metro.

In a pre-match press conference, manager Mikel Arteta provided an update on the midfielder, saying on Friday:

"We have another session today. We need to nail the timing of when (Partey) has enough in the tank to compete. He’s very close."

Partey made four appearances at the start of the season before suffering a groin injury. He returned to play 15 minutes back in October but has been out since due to a hamstring injury.

On the other hand, Arsenal have suffered a blow as striker Gabriel Jesus has suffered a setback in his recovery from injury. Arteta said about the Brazilian:

"We could not resolve it as quickly as we wanted and he had a small reaction in training again.

"We didn’t want to take any more risks because he has been out for quite a while and he is a player that we need at his best. We decided to give him a few more days."

Jesus has suffered multiple injury issues this season but has made 23 appearances for Arsenal across competitions. He has scored eight goals and provided five assists in that time.

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta provides injury update on Jurrien Timber

The Gunners signed Jurrien Timber from Ajax for a reported fee of £38 million last summer. He helped them win the Community Shield but suffered an ACL injury in his first Premier League appearance for Arsenal.

Ahead of the Newcastle clash, Mikel Arteta was asked if Timber would feature again before the end of the season. He answered (via Arsenal.com):

"I really hope so, he’s doing really well, he’s been around some players on the pitch and we are going to start to do some bits with us in the next week or so. Then we need to see how that evolves, his confidence levels, his fitness levels and hopefully then the answer is ‘yes’."

The Gunners will hope to have their injured players back soon as they enter the business end of the season.

They are third in the Premier League standings, five points behind leaders Liverpool with a game in hand. They also trail Porto 1-0 after the first leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 clash.