Jesus is coming back soon -Mikel Arteta

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has delivered a positive update on the fitness of his striker Gabriel Jesus, claiming that the Brazilian forward 'will be back soon' despite suffering a shock injury last week.

Arsenal are preparing to take on Manchester City in the FA Community Shield this weekend at Wembley and will be without the prolific forward, with the Spanish manager confirming he had undergone a procedure on his knee.

The 26-year-old notably had some issues with his knee last season after he limped off the pitch during Brazil's 2022 World Cup group-stage match against Cameroon, with a suspected medial ligament issue.

It led to him being sidelined for a large chunk of the campaign, with the 26-year-old missing 12 Premier League matches before returning to play in March.

He was not included in the squad for Arsenal's pre-season friendly against Monaco on Wednesday and it looks like Eddie Nketiah, who started and scored during the match, could now lead the lines for the Gunners in the opening weeks of the new Premier League season.

But Arteta, who was speaking ahead of Sunday's showdown against his old mentor Pep Guardiola, seemed optimistic about Jesus's situation despite his history of knee issues. 

'He is fine obviously he was very disappointed, he was feeling very good and this issue came up,' he said during a press conference on Friday. 

'Nobody expected it and we had to do a little procedure there. But unfortunately it was the best thing to do.

'[To do it] as quickly as possible the better. We made that decision. I'm sure he will be back soon and very fit.'

Arteta also delivered an update on Bukayo Saka's fitness, after he admitted after the match that he was not brought on because he had an 'illness'.

He said: 'Yeah Bukayo is much better, he trained today.'

'We're very excited to play a final and have the opportunity to win a trophy,' he said when asked about this weekend's game against Manchester City.

'We’re playing against that is the team to beat. They are the best team in Europe last season and we know what the standards are and what we're going to need [to do] to win the game.'

With Arsenal's Premier League season set to start in just over a week, Arteta admitted that he is still tinkering with his squad.

So far this summer, the north London outfit have signed Declan Rice in a £105million move from West Ham, Kai Havertz from Chelsea for £65m and Jurrien Timber for £40m.

Several other players including Folarin Balogun, Nicolas Pepe, and Nuno Tavares have all returned from loan moves too.

But the Gunners boss hinted that he is still looking at bringing in some more new faces to ensure there is plenty of competition within his squad. 

'We are working on a few things,' he said. 'We have to make a few decisions and there is still time to do that we are very happy with the squad and we are working to ensure we have

healthy competition within the squad.'

It comes as Arsenal have tabled a £20m bid plus £3m in add-ons bid to sign Brentford goalkeeper David Raya as competition for Aaron Ramsdale between the sticks.

The Brentford goalkeeper has reportedly agreed personal terms and is keen to join the club.