Even though it was a later game in England, Nottingham Forest coach Nuno Esprito Santo was hooked up to the TV for sure. After all, he was watching the penalty shootout between Senegal and Ivory Coast to see which player will he get back in the team soon. And he will get two: Moussa Niakhate and Cheikhou Kouyate, whose team was defeated and is heading home. They won’t be able to participate in tonight’s game against Arsenal but will be available for the next fixture, which will be a huge boost for him. Before leaving the squad, Niakhate had made 16 appearances in all competitions this season for Forest. His last two games saw him play the full 90 minutes in wins against Newcastle and Manchester United. ‘You are corrupt, keep your African Cup’Ivory Coast’s victory, however, also means three of his players will stay in Africa for the time being: Ibrahim Sangare, Willy Boly and Serge Aurier. Forest have been ‘hit’ by AFCON hard as no less than six players have been away, and Nigeria’s Olu Aina is the last one. Apart from the Africans, Espirito Santo has a number of injured players like Taiwo Awoniyi, Divock Origi, while Morgan Gibbs-White and Anthony Elanga could feature against the Gunners. The visitors will miss Japanese defender Takehiro Tomiyasu (healthy but on Asian Cup), while Mohamed Elneny, Thomas Partey, Julian Timber and Fabio Vieira will also be unavailable. Arsenal fans hope that Declan Rice’s health problems are not serious and that he will be available for the Nottingham game. After Xavi’s shock announcement, Tuchel and Arteta had to speak outBut coach Mikel Arteta had more problems due to media reports from Spain than because of injuries. After Xavi’s official announcement in the wake of a 5-3 defeat against Villarreal, the Gunners boss was immediately featured in a report which said that he was seriously thinking of leaving London and accepting a Barcelona job. “That’s totally fake news. What you read yesterday is…I don’t know where it is coming from and it is totally untrue. I am really upset about it. I could not believe it. I don’t know where it is coming from and it has no source. It has got nothing and I think we have to be very cautious when you talk about personal things to put it in the way it was put yesterday” said Arteta, who committed himself to Arsenal once again. THE PREMIER LEAGUERound 22Tuesday22:30 (8.50) Nottingham Forest (4.80) Arsenal (1.43)22: 45 (2.50) Fulham (3.35) Everton (3.05)22:45 (4.60) Luton (3.60) Brighton (1.60)23:00 (1.65) Crystal Palace (3.70) Sheffield United (6.50)23:15 (1.95) Aston Villa (3.60) Newcastle (3.80)Wednesday22:30 (1.70) Tottenham (3.90) Brentford (4.90)22:30 (1.10) Manchester City (11.0) Burnley (18.0)23:15 (1.63) Liverpool (4.20) Chelsea (5.70)Thursday22:30 (2.50) West Ham (3.50) Bournemouth (2.95)23:15 (2.85) Wolverhampton (3.50) Manchester United (2.55)
