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TEAM NEWS: Arsenal Handed Triple Injury Boost + Walcott Latest

By on December 23, 2014

yaya-sanogo-arsenal

Arsenal have been handed a triple injury boost with Tomas Rosicky, Yaya Sanogo and David Ospina all passed fit to face QPR on Friday.

Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Rosicky should be back from a thigh injury that’s kept him on the sidelines in recent weeks.

With a tricky trip to West Ham less than 48 hours later, the boss will no doubt rotate on Friday so Rosicky could be in line to make a rare start.

Sanogo is also back in the squad after recovering from a hamstring strain but I doubt we’ll see him start, so a place on the bench is the best he can hope for.

The same can be said of Ospina. The goalkeeper is finally fit after struggling with a thigh injury since joining the club in the summer but Arsene may choose to stick with Emi Martinez as his No.2 for now.

We’re still waiting on further news regarding the fitness of Hector Bellerin after he picked up a minor foot problem, but hopefully he could be available to take on the Hammers on Sunday.

Arsene was also quizzed on whether Theo Walcott is ready to make his first start in almost a year but it sounds as though he’ll be eased back into action, so I think he’ll probably be used as a sub against QPR and might possibly push for a start against West Ham two days later.

Wenger told Arsenal.com:

on team news…

From Sunday I think everybody should be fit and available. We might have Rosicky back in the squad and Sanogo back in the squad. Bellerin, I don’t know yet, but certainly Rosicky and Sanogo will be available.

on Ospina…

David Ospina is available as well.

on whether Walcott is ready to start…

He had only two days training with the team, I will see how he is this week. But fitness-wise he is not far. It is more that Theo has basically not played since January, so it has been a year.

As we reported earlier, Mesut Ozil and Mikel Arteta are due back at the start of January, Laurent Koscielny could face West Ham while Aaron Ramsey is on course to take on Southampton on New Years Day.

But it’s QPR up first and I think we could see a few changes to the side that drew at Liverpool with Coquelin, Monreal and Podolski all pushing for recalls as the boss tries to rotate and keep his players fresh over the busy festive period.

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