SOCCER
Rice, Calafiori and Tzolis Return to Arsenal Training Before Liverpool Trip
Mikel Arteta says all three trained Friday, with availability dependent on another session. Noni Madueke remains a separate fitness question for the trip to Anfield.
Declan Rice, Riccardo Calafiori and Christos Tzolis trained with Arsenal on Friday, Mikel Arteta confirmed, giving the club three potential additions to its options for Sunday’s Premier League visit to Liverpool. Their availability remained conditional on completing another session without problems.
“They all trained today, and they will train tomorrow, and if everything is ok, they will be available,” Arteta said in his pre-match news conference. He did not announce a starting lineup or confirm how many minutes the returning players could manage.
Rice and Calafiori missed Tuesday’s Carabao Cup defeat at Fleetwood Town after experiencing problems against Everton the previous weekend. Rice was replaced in the 79th minute of that league win, while Calafiori appeared uncomfortable late in the game and went down the tunnel at full time.
Noni Madueke’s position was less certain. Arteta said Arsenal still needed to see whether the winger could complete Saturday’s full training session before determining his availability. The manager’s update therefore did not put all four fitness concerns in the same category.
Madueke has been dealing with an ankle injury. His situation and Tzolis’ possible return matter to Arsenal’s wide options because Bukayo Saka remains sidelined and Max Dowman is serving a three-match domestic suspension following his dismissal at Fleetwood.
Arteta said Saka was feeling considerably better, but further assessment was needed before establishing his return date. He would not commit to whether the England winger could play before the November international break.
The manager also rejected the suggestion that Kai Havertz’s recent form was connected to a previous injury, maintaining his confidence in the forward despite a decline in his scoring numbers.
Arsenal’s last Premier League victory at Anfield came in 2012. Arteta described Sunday’s fixture as an opportunity to end that wait against an opponent he considers a title challenger.
