Arteta confirms Saliba suffered injury before Liverpool game

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed that William Saliba sustained an ankle injury during the warm-up before Sunday’s 1-0 loss to Liverpool at Anfield.

The French defender attempted to start the match but was forced off inside five minutes after struggling to continue following an early challenge with Hugo Ekitike.

He was replaced by new signing Cristhian Mosquera, who impressed on his Premier League debut despite Arsenal conceding late to a superb Dominik Szoboszlai free-kick.

Speaking after the match, Arteta revealed that Saliba had insisted on playing despite the knock.

“He twisted his ankle during the warm-up. He said he believed he could carry on, but straightaway in the first two actions I could see he couldn’t cope and we had to get him out,” Arteta said.

According to reports, Saliba will not join up with the French national team for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

Arsenal’s medical staff are set to carry out scans to assess the degree of the injury.