We head into Saturday’s London derby at Stamford Bridge with depleted options at left back.
With Sead Kolasinac injured and Nacho Monreal unavailable against Manchester City last Sunday, Ainsley Maitland-Niles started, but was forced off after 25 minutes.
Stephan Lichtsteiner capably filled in thereafter - but, with Monreal back in training, will the Swiss international retain his place against Chelsea?
“It’s clear that we don’t want to have injuries in the team,” Unai Emery said in his pre-match press conference. “When you want to play and be competitive, they can arrive.
“The first injury with Kolasinac was important because I think he was playing well in pre-season. But we needed to play with another player like Ainsley [once Kolasinac was injured].
“His performance can improve, he can get better in his career in the team. Maybe not especially at left back, but he was playing well in the first 25 minutes on Sunday. After this injury, I tried with Lichtsteiner, who is a player with experience. He can play at left back but his position in the team is more at right back.
“This week Nacho Monreal is working every day, training every day with us. The two options we have now are Nacho Monreal and Lichtsteiner to continue in this position.”
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