Riccardo Calafiori and Ethan Nwaneri pictured in training Riccardo Calafiori and Ethan Nwaneri pictured in training Arsenal have been bolstered by the returns of defender Riccardo Calafiori and midfielder Ethan Nwaneri ahead of their Champions League clash with Dinamo Zagreb. (More Football News)
Arsenal have won four of their six European matches so far this term, also playing out a goalless draw at Atalanta and losing 1-0 to 2022-23 runners-up Inter.
Ahead of Tuesday's fixtures, the Opta supercomputer gave the Gunners a 98% chance of making the last 16 and a 13% chance of winning the tournament, making them third favourites behind Liverpool (22%) and Inter (17%).
Mikel Arteta's team have been beset by injuries in recent weeks, though, with Bukayo Saka sidelined for over two months with a hamstring issue and William Saliba sustaining a muscle problem during last week's win over Tottenham.
Arsenal 2-2 Aston Villa, Premier League: Arteta 'Very Worried' Over Saliba InjuryArsenal have endured a tough start to 2025, only winning one of their first five games of the year across all competitions, but Arteta can welcome back Calafiori and Nwaneri this week.
"It's very positive news. We missed them for a few weeks, and they returned today for training," Arteta said of the duo.
"They will be available for the game. Saliba is feeling much better, but this game comes a little bit too early for him."
Nwaneri has scored five goals in 18 games in his breakout season. Italy international Calafiori, meanwhile, has struggled for fitness since joining from Bologna for around £40million.
best online slot gamesArteta warned Arsenal's upcoming opponents Dinamo, who sit 24th in the Champions League table with eight points from six games, will present a difficult challenge as they battle for a play-off spot.
"They have some individuals that catch your eye. We are in a strong position, and now it's time to capitalise at home," Arteta said, with Arsenal hoping to skip the knockout-round play-offs by finishing in the top eight.
"With the schedule that we had for the last three months, you can have a break and reset a little bit, work on things and rest some people.
"After the work that we have done for many months, we need a strong performance against a really good side, and we'll try to do that. So far we have done really well."
After hosting Dinamo, Arteta's side will travel to Spain to face Girona in their final group-stage game next week.
These two teams are meeting for the first time in the tournament in pool stage.ps88