Arsenal
Arteta Weighs Ending Pre-Match Warmups After Fourth Injury Hits Arsenal
Arteta may ditch pre-match warmups after four injuries to Arsenal players this season. and routines.
Mikel Arteta has acknowledged that Arsenal may change, or even stop, their pre-match warmup routine after the club suffered a fourth injury this season during preparations. The pattern, Arteta said, has forced a review of the ritual that precedes kick-off.
“Yeah, yeah, big time,” he told reporters when asked if the practice was under scrutiny. “They were very different. The first one was Willy [Saliba] when he rolled his ankle against Liverpool. Then we had two incidents with Riccy in the warmup in a really similar way. The other one was Bukayo after he rested in midweek, he didn’t play against Kairat, and then against Leeds he gets an injury. Very unusual. Probably happened once or twice in six years I have been here and it happened four times there.
“So obviously we are looking at it.
“On Willy’s one, very difficult to see. Sometimes as well you want to try and test a player before to see if they are ready and the warmup is another opportunity to do it. Bukayo’s is very random because he never gave any symptoms or signals away that this could happen in the warmup. It is what it is, we have to learn.”
Arteta admitted the possibility of abandoning the warmup is unsettling. “When I am in the office and the moment I hear my door, somebody steps in, I am like No, please because it is a moment that is very tricky.” He added: “To change that sometimes is tricky,” Arteta warned. “It is a really good area to have a look. What would happen if we don’t do the warmup? Because then. At half time, we go and sit almost for 15 minutes and then go full gas in the second half. Maybe it is something to think about.”
He defended the role warmups have played in mental preparation. “I was a player as well and we like certain routines and that’s the way you tell your body, It is coming, it is coming, it is coming.” Not every player shares that view. “One part of my job I’ll never learn to love is the pre-match warmup,” Andrea Pirlo wrote in his wonderfully witty autobiography I Think Therefore I Play. “I hate it with every fibre of my being. It actually disgusts me. It’s nothing but masturbation for conditioning coaches, their way of enjoying themselves at the players’ expense.”
The injury log shows: William Saliba (Liverpool, Aug. 31) missed 3 games (16 days); Riccardo Calafiori (Brighton, Dec. 27) missed 9 games (32 days); Bukayo Saka (Leeds, Jan. 31) missed 3 games (13 days); Riccardo Calafiori (Wigan, Feb. 15) time out TBD. Arteta confirmed Calafiori will be fit for Wednesday’s trip to Molineux and urged the swift return of other players. “We need some players back and fit and to give us as well not only numbers but different options in relation to the opponents that we have,” the increasingly beleaguered manager fretted. “So the quicker they are the better.”
The club has warned that this run of injuries threatens depth and echoes the 2022–23 campaign collapse after William Saliba’s back problem coincided with a points drop behind Manchester City.
Arsenal
Arsenal’s Vinícius Júnior Interest Meets Real Madrid Resistance
Arsenal are waiting as Real Madrid and Vinícius Júnior enter fresh talks over his future.
Arsenal’s reported interest in Vinícius Júnior has emerged as one of the summer’s most ambitious transfer storylines, but the scale of the challenge remains clear. The Gunners are understood to be monitoring whether a move for the Real Madrid winger could become possible, even if the Spanish club still hold the upper hand.
Vinícius is still only 26 and remains one of the most destructive wide players in world football. He has already won the 2024 FIFA The Best Men’s Player Award and finished second in that year’s Ballon d’Or behind Manchester City’s Rodri. For Arsenal, his profile makes obvious sense, with the Brazilian seen as a player who could elevate Mikel Arteta’s attacking options immediately.
Yet the current reality is that Real Madrid are still in control. Vinícius returned to the club’s training base on Monday for his standard medical checks after his holiday following the 2026 World Cup. Jose Mourinho confirmed he was due back on Monday, and the winger has already completed his first training session ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.
That return is expected to trigger a fresh round of contract talks, after 18 months in which agreement on a new deal has proved elusive. The biggest issue remains Vinícius’s push to become the first player in club history to receive a renewal bonus. Reports have suggested he may be willing to soften that stance, but there is still a significant gap to bridge.
Florentino Pérez has long been regarded as one of Vinícius’s strongest supporters, but he has also shown he will not bend easily in negotiations. The wider message is simple: Vinícius, Mourinho and Pérez all want him to stay, but each appears to want it on their own terms.
Unless a compromise is found soon, Real Madrid could even weigh up a sale this summer rather than risk losing him for nothing a year later. Arsenal, for now, are waiting. They are reportedly prepared to make him one of the club’s highest earners, and Andrea Berta has already held talks with his camp, according to The Athletic.
Analytics & Stats
One priority signing each Premier League club should target before the window closes
A club-by-club look at the main transfer priority every Premier League side still needs to address.
With less than a month left in the transfer window, Premier League clubs are still expected to be busy. Incomings and outgoings remain likely across the division, and every side still appears to have at least one clear gap to fill before the deadline.
Arsenal may be attracting attention with their pursuit of Vinícius Júnior, but their bigger need is in central midfield. Declan Rice carried too much of the load last season, while Martín Zubimendi faded after the break and Myles Lewis-Skelly is not yet fully trusted there. Another box-to-box midfielder would help enormously.
Aston Villa could soon be short at left back if Lucas Digne leaves, which would leave Ian Maatsen as the only senior option. Bournemouth need more depth in wide areas, Brentford still require a more natural left back, and Brighton & Hove Albion must replace the goals lost with Danny Welbeck’s move to Chelsea.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have done plenty of work already but still have not addressed the goalkeeper position. Robert Sánchez improved in 2025-26, yet the club still look in need of a top-class solution.
Elsewhere, Coventry City are close to signing Carl Rushworth permanently and would then turn to left back. Crystal Palace need centre-back reinforcements after losing Marc Guéhi and Maxence Lacroix, while Everton must add a defensive midfielder after Idrissa Gana Gueye’s departure.
Fulham will look for winger depth after strengthening up front, Hull City want more options in attack, and Ipswich Town are still waiting for a central midfielder. Leeds United may also need another striker to cover for Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s injury record.
Liverpool’s most pressing issue is out wide, Manchester City need a right back, Manchester United still want a more destructive midfielder, and Newcastle are alarmingly short at left back. Nottingham Forest must replace Elliot Anderson in midfield, Sunderland need more balance on the left side, and Tottenham Hotspur have already moved aggressively to rebuild after last season’s collapse.
Arsenal
Arsenal Restore Yellow For 2026-27 Third Kit
Arsenal have brought back yellow for their 2026-27 third kit, with ambition driving the new design.
Arsenal have revived a familiar look for their 2026-27 third strip, bringing back yellow for the first time in five years.
The colour had not appeared on the pitch since 2021-22, when it was last used in match kit form. Since then, it has been kept largely for lifestyle collections, but it now returns for Mikel Arteta’s side as they prepare for the new campaign.
Released with the tagline “Arsenal State of Mind,” the design is built around the idea that the club is “more than a club” and instead “a shared sense of possibility.” That message fits the mood around Arsenal this season, with expectations high after last season’s Premier League title and a drive to add European success.
Alessia Russo spoke about what the kit represents from a player’s perspective. “Being part of Arsenal means being part of something bigger than yourself,” said Arsenal Women forward Alessia Russo. “There’s a sense of belief, ambition and togetherness that connects everyone who loves this club.
“That’s what Arsenal State of Mind means to me. It’s the feeling that we’re all part of the same journey and pushing towards the same goals. We can’t wait to wear this kit and create more amazing memories with our supporters this season.”
The third kit is completed with navy shorts and socks, and is now available through Arsenal and adidas.
The club’s ambitions do not stop there. Kai Havertz made clear that the target is to keep pushing after last season’s league triumph. “We want all the trophies,” he vowed. “That’s what we’re here for. We won the Premier League now but there’s a lot more that we can do.
“We have to reach another level to make that happen because we know how long the season is and how hard it is to go through all the competitions. We want to do it better again this year and make things happen again.”
He continued: “I think we can, or we have to go further. ”
