Arsenal ended a 22-year wait for a Premier League title last month, but as Mikel Arteta's side prepare to open the new campaign against Coventry City on 21 August, the cost of that triumph is becoming painfully clear. Several of the club's key players are nursing injuries that forced them to miss international duty in March and are now being managed at the World Cup in the United States.
Bukayo Saka has been battling Achilles tendinopathy since March, on top of earlier hip and hamstring problems. He is not involved in every England training session, and his fitness is expected to be managed until the knockout stages at the earliest. Declan Rice, forced off against Croatia, has been dealing with neural hamstring pain since Christmas – a problem that required injections and, he insists, a significant period of rest to fully heal. Martin Odegaard's knee pain 'is only starting to ease,' while William Saliba revealed on Saturday that he is going to have to play through back discomfort, admitting he is still 'not 100 per cent.' Rice, who has seen Saka's struggles first hand at club level, said the cautious approach by Thomas Tuchel and England's medical staff 'is the best way forward.'
“Arsenal begin Premier League title defence against Coventry amid injury crisis for Saka, Rice, Odegaard and Saliba.”
The World Cup final takes place on 19 July, leaving barely four weeks before Arsenal face Manchester City in the Community Shield in Cardiff. Then comes the Premier League opener: a Friday night trip to the Emirates for newly promoted Coventry, who will play their first top-flight match in 25 years after winning the Championship last season. The fixture list has handed Arteta an immediate test of his squad depth. The trio of Saka, Rice and Saliba made a combined 154 appearances for the club last term, and with Odegaard missing 27 games due to various injuries, Arsenal must hatch a plan to ease the burden without damaging squad harmony. Arteta and co-chair Josh Kroenke have made it clear the club will not stand still in the transfer market, but after Liverpool's disastrous summer in 2025, wholesale changes are not the answer.
Elsewhere on the opening weekend, Hull City – promoted via the play-offs – host Manchester United on Saturday 22 August, while Ipswich entertain Sunderland the same day. Manchester City begin life without Pep Guardiola at home to Bournemouth on Sunday, and Andoni Iraola takes his new side Liverpool to Newcastle for his debut match. Chelsea, now managed by Xabi Alonso, travel to Fulham on Monday 24 August.
The Premier League season will end on 30 May 2027, with Arsenal at home to Brighton, City at Sunderland, and Liverpool hosting Iraola's former club Bournemouth. But for now, the champions face a delicate balancing act: celebrating a historic title while trying to keep their most important players fit enough to defend it.