Arsenal face midfield crisis as they look to bounce back against West Ham

Tuesday, January 22, 2013
10:49 AM

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Lukas Podolski are available for Arsenal’s Premier League game against West Ham after they overcame their respective illnesses.

Manager Arsene Wenger has a problem in midfield as Mikel Arteta (calf), Francis Coquelin (hamstring), and Tomas Rosicky (calf) are all out.

Defensive midfielder Abou Diaby (thigh) will have a test, but forward Gervinho is away at the African Nations Cup and goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski out with a foot injury.

Wenger said this morning: “Coquelin is out because he has a hamstring problem from the Chelsea game.

“Everybody else has to be assessed individually today but there are no major injuries.

“We could have Podolski back in the squad. He’s back to full training today and maybe Oxlade-Chamberlain will be back in the squad. He has been sick but he will maybe go out today to practice.”

Provisional squad: Szczesny, Gibbs, Vermaelen, Mertesacker, Sagna, Cazorla, Diaby, Walcott, Wilshere, Giroud, Mannone, Koscielny, Ramsey, Podolski, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santos, Arshavin, Jenkinson.