Declan Rice is reportedly nursing a broken toe ahead of Arsenal’s game against Chelsea (Picture: X)
Arsenal fans are confident Declan Rice will be back from injury to play against Chelsea on Sunday after club legend Paul Merson posted a picture with the midfielder on his X account.
The England international missed Wednesday’s controversial 1-0 defeat against Inter on Wednesday amid reports he had broken a toe.
Rice is understood to be willing to play through the pain barrier, but manager Mikel Arteta was giving nothing away during Friday’s pre-match press conference and remained typically coy.
Asked for an update on the club-record signing, Arteta said: ‘I have to be very vague on that one because there’s no clarity on whether he’s going to be fit for the weekend.
‘[Whether he has a broken toe is] for the doctor, what I can say is that he hasn’t trained yet and it is not clear whether he’s going to be available or not to play.’
Merson, meanwhile, was back at his old stomping ground yesterday, interviewing Arteta and Rice for features that will go out on Sky Sports over the course of the weekend.
Eagle-eyed supporters noticed Rice was wearing conventional shoes in the picture uploaded by Merson but fans were all still keen for an update on his supposedly damaged digit.
Declan Rice is an injury doubt for Sunday’s showdown against Chelsea (Picture: X)
Source:: Metro