29 February 2024 , 03:00
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Arsenal face a make-or-break few weeks as Mikel Arteta looks to improve on last season's efforts in the Premier League and in Europe.
An early elimination from the FA Cup has given the Gunners a bit of time off before travelling to relegation-battling Sheffield United over the weekend. After that comes a London derby against Brentford, before Arteta's men welcome Porto for the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie.
The manager will want to have his best team available to him at all times, and has been able to welcome some senior figures back in recent weeks. One of their longest-term absentees is also now on the road to recovery at a pivotal time.
Those looking beyond the current season won't have been able to avoid speculation about Arteta's own future. That's another of the topics in focus as Mirror Football brings you the latest lines from North London.
Barcelona call time on Arteta pursuit
Barcelona will not be stepping up their efforts to coax Mikel Arteta away from Arsenal, it has been claimed. The Spaniard, who began his career with Barca's B team, had been linked as a successor to Xavi when the current boss leaves the Catalan club at the end of the season.
Wenger breaks silence on Arsenal visit as he doubles down on title prediction
Arteta has 18 months remaining on his current deal in North London. However, the former Manchester City coach has previously played down Barca links as he aims to win his first Premier League title with Arsenal.
"That’s totally fake news," he said about earlier Barcelona links. "What you read yesterday is… I don’t know where it is coming from, and it is totally untrue. I am really upset about it. I could not believe [it]. I don’t know where it is coming from and it has no source.
Timber back in training
Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber has taken the next step to a first-team return by getting back onto the training field. The summer signing has not played since August, when he suffered an ACL injury which required surgery.
Will Arsenal win the Premier League this season? Have your say in the comments section
Jurrien Timber hasn't played since August (Getty Images)The 22-year-old is still not back in full training, though he has rejoined his first-team colleagues as he works his way back to full fitness. Initially it was feared the former Ajax defender might miss the entire season, but Mikel Arteta has been more optimistic of late.
"I really hope so (he'll play again this season), he’s doing really well," Arteta said before Arsenal's victory over Newcastle last time out. “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’.”
Gallas still unsure about Havertz
Former Arsenal captain William Gallas still has reservations about Kai Havertz's goal return despite the German impressing of late. Havertz scored and put in an all-round solid display against Newcastle, the sixth time he has netted since returning from the November international break.
"At the beginning, I didn’t understand why Arsenal signed him," Gallas told Lord Ping. "We were talking about players that are moving from one English club to another, Kai Havertz from Chelsea to Arsenal, normally he shouldn’t need time to adapt, like Declan Rice.
"Even though he’s scored in his last few games, I’m not convinced he’ll have a great season. What is a great season for him? Last season, he scored 7 goals for Chelsea. This season, I don’t know how many goals he’ll score but for the price they bought him, he has to score 15 goals this season, but I don’t think he’ll score that many goals this season."
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