Saka, Havertz, Gabriel: Arsenal injury news and return dates ahead of Crystal Palace showdown

Arsenal returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a lopsided 4-0 thrashing against a hapless Ipswich Town side.

The Gunners were the vastly superior side throughout the contest at Portman Road and stormed into an early lead through Leandro Trossard before doubling their lead through Gabriel Martinelli.

Mikel Arteta’s job was made even easier on the half hour mark when Leif Davis was sent off for a reckless challenge on Bukayo Saka. The England international, who has only recently returned from a long lay-off played the next 25 minutes in some discomfort before eventually being taken off the pitch for Ethan Nweneri in the early stages of the second half. Arsenal continued to dominate and scored two further goals through Trossard and Nwaneri to secure their first away victory in the league since a 1-0 win over Wolves back in January.

Arteta’s team have essentially no chance of leapfrogging Liverpool in this year’s title race and will have to wait until the 2025/26 season at least to resume their title bid but still have plenty of pride to play for when they take on London rivals Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, the fixtures comes just six days before Arsenal’s crucial Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain and also comes at an inconvenient time for Palace, who have a trip to Wembley to face Aston Villa on the horizon.

Ahead of a big game in terms of momentum for both teams, we take a look at the Arsenal injury record and which stars could still return to play a part in their European adventure.

Arsenal defensive injury woes

Japan international Takehiro Tomiyasu misses the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on his knee. He has posted on social media: "I’ve had a surgery on my knee few days ago. I’ve already started my rehab to do what I love the most again. It has been the toughest period in my career for sure and it carries on a bit more but I won’t give up. Thank you for your support and see you again."

Fans could see him at the start of next season but won’t see much of him in pre-season with August being his estimated return to training date.

Elsewhere, the Gunners are also expected to be without Brazil international Gabriel, who has been one of the team’s best performers this term. He’s out with a thigh problem that’s likely to rule him out until at least mid-July.

Riccardo Calafiori could make the squad against Paris Saint-Germain. The Italian has had a stop-start season due to injury this term but has impressed when given opportunities. He’s nursing a knee injury but is poised to return by late April.

Is Bukayo Saka injured?

Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka has been one of the biggest injury blows to the Gunners in the second half of the season. His absence derailed the club’s title push and left them lacking in invention in the final third.

Saka’s return coincided with a victory over European holder Real Madrid both home and away in one of the great results in the club’s recent history. However, he was subbed off against Ipswich with a minor ankle injury which could lead to him being rested against Crystal Palace. He was a bit sore, but it's nothing serious, so it's good,” says Arteta, who's likely to have the winger read for the game against the French champions.

In midfield Jorginho is less fortunate and is thought to be on the sidelines until early May with a chest injury. The Italian does have experience winning the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021. He played alongside Kai Havertz for the Blues that year - and the German is also pushing to make a return ahead of schedule.

Havertz was initially ruled out until the end of the season with a hamstring problem but is ahead of schedule and could be back by mid-May. '”I think [the UCL semi-final is] too close. But if I have to bet on him earlier than expected, I would say yes. The way he works every day in that gym, pushing everybody, I don't think you can hold him much longer,” explained Arteta.

The same, however, cannot be said of Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus, who misses the rest of the season with an ACL injury which could rule him out until November.

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