Calafiori, Havertz & Jorginho: Latest Arsenal injury news and return dates ahead of Bournemouth game

Arsenal face an uphill battle in the Champions League after their 1-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their semi-final on Tuesday evening, but before they get the chance to turn things around, there’s the small matter of a Premier League match against Bournemouth – but will of their many injured players feature?

Mikel Arteta may be tempted to rest several players who have been nursing injury issues of late, but qualification for next season’s Champions League has not yet been secured and Andoni Iraola’s Cherries have proven themselves to be challenging opponents over the course of the season.

The Gunners were boosted by the returns of Mikel Merino and Ben White to the squad on Tuesday night – although White was only fit enough for the bench – but seven players are either out or doubts for Saturday’s showdown at the Emirates, including Riccardo Calafiori, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Magalhães. We’ve got the latest updates on all of the players that Arsenal may have to make do without this weekend, and their expected return dates when available, below.

Will Riccardo Calafiori be back to face Bournemouth and PSG?

Italian international defender Calafiori was among the players whose status was doubtful heading into the first leg against PSG, and in the end he was left to watch from the sidelines due to the knee injury that he picked up during the last international break.

Arteta had originally told the media that he would be available “if everything goes well” and he is back in training, but he failed a late fitness test with Arteta simply telling reporters that “Ricci is still not fit”.

“He is doing quite a lot of stuff and we just need to make the right steps now to make sure when he is back, he is in a good place to perform,” Arteta continued, but it remains unclear as to precisely when he might be back to help out a defence which will also be without Gabriel (hamstring) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) for the rest of the season.

Gabriel should be back in time for pre-season after undergoing surgery, but Japanese defender Tomiyasu, who has only featured once over the course of the current campaign, may not play again until the autumn. Ben White is back but may be rested for the Bournemouth game – or have his minutes limited – in order to ensure he is fully fit for the second leg in Paris after a difficult season riddled with fitness concerns.

Kai Havertz closes in on unexpected return

When German striker Havertz first injured his hamstring – like Gabriel, he had to undergo surgery – he was expected to be out for the remainder of the campaign, but his rehabilitation has been progressing at a remarkable rate and it now seems likely that he will play at least some part in May.

“If I have to bet on him [coming back] earlier than expected, I would say yes,” Arteta told reporters recently, but also added that he believed that the games against PSG were “too close” for him. Havertz has not yet returned to full training and it is highly unlikely that he involved against Bournemouth or next Wednesday.

Fellow forward Gabriel Jesus will be out until November at the earliest due to a serious ACL injury as well, but the return of Merino will at least give Arteta more options in attack – and the Spaniard may not be needed in midfield either, with Thomas Partey returning from suspension.

Jorginho is another serious doubt, however, with the Italian expected to miss “a few weeks” with an abdominal injury that Arteta described as “scary”. He is progressing well in his recovery but the next two matches are likely to arrive too soon.

The final player that Arsenal will have to get by without this weekend is back-up goalkeeper Neto, who is on loan from Bournemouth and therefore ineligible to face his parent club.