Arteta on injuries, players' 'rhythm' and Palace

[ASFN Admin]

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Premier League game against Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• It is "nothing too serious" for Bukayo Saka after being on the receiving end of a poor Leif Davis challenge on Sunday at Ipswich.
• Riccardo Calafiori and Jorginho are unavailable, with Arteta "hopeful but not certain" that the latter will return before the end of the season.
• On "wanting to wrap his players up in cotton wool" before the Champions League semi-final, Arteta said: "We cannot think in those terms. When the players are fit and available and want to play, they have to play. They are at their best when they are playing and they have consistency in their performances, and physically and emotionally they are good. They have the rhythm and that is when they are at their best."
• He said he will be "sensible with decision-making" and seek guidance from his wider team before selecting his line-up.
• He praised Martin Odegaard for his "exceptional" performance against Ipswich, in which he came out on top for the majority of match stats.
• On opponents Crystal Palace: "They are a really good side who have a really good record away from home. They are really tough opponents. They are very competitive so tomorrow we are going to have to be really good."
• He denied that their incentive to win on Wednesday is to delay Liverpool's title party and said: "Our incentive is to win our game and do our best to continue the run we are on at the moment. The rest we cannot control."
• He said "it's good to have a little gap" in between the Palace match and the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Paris St-Germain "because we are really short in numbers".

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