Arsene Wenger confirmed new signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is a huge doubt for Arsenal’s clash with Everton on Saturday.
The centre-forward joined the Gunners for £56million on transfer deadline day from Borussia Dortmund, but Wenger has since confirmed that illness is causing him to be unlikely to feature against the Toffees.
“I have to assess how he is today and how he feels,” said Wenger, as quoted by The Sun.
“He had a fever and so he couldn’t practise a lot.
“He practised yesterday but was still not feeling well so I have to assess with the medical department to see how fit and well he will be.”
The 28-year-old scored 21 goals in 24 appearances for the German giants this season before leaving to join Arsenal; therefore Everton will be relieved to hear that the prolific Aubameyang is unlikely to make his Premier League debut against them.
Wenger also confirmed that Jack Wilshere is set to be fit for Saturday’s game along with Henrikh Mkhitaryan being ready to make his first start for the Gunners since joining from Manchester United.
Everton are aiming to build on their success in their last league outing again Leicester City, as the Toffees won 2-1, which was their first win in the league since December 18.
OPINION
Everton hardly have the best defensive record this season and after getting back to winning ways, will be relieved to hear that Aubameyang is a huge doubt for Saturday’s game. The Toffees will still struggle to beat the Gunners due to the quality that Wenger has in his side, but it easier to contend with a side without a forward of Aubameyang’s ability. The former Borussia Dortmund forward will no doubt want to make an instant impact on his debut and the Toffees look like not being the team to suffer due to Aubameyang wanting to hit the ground running. The 28-year-old forward now looks like making his debut against Tottenham, which is unfortunate for them.