Mikel Arteta has revealed Arsenal are “not very optimistic” about the possibility of Thomas Partey playing again this season.
Partey, 28, has been assessed this week after the Ghana international sustained a thigh injury during Arsenal’s 3-0 loss at Crystal Palace on April 4.
The Athletic reported last week that Partey was expected to be out for the next few weeks with his thigh problem.
Arsenal have eight games to play in the Premier League with Arteta’s side battling it out for a top-four spot but it seems unlikely the Spaniard will be able to call on Partey's services.
Arteta, speaking ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Southampton on Saturday, said: “The news we got after having an assessment is not great.
“It’s not looking very positive for his availability this season, but we’ll have to wait and see. He’s trying to get back as quickly as possible but at the moment we are not very optimistic about it.
“The moment is not ideal. We knew towards the end of the season one of the key elements was going to be having the team available as much as possible. We have a few issues with him and (Takehiro) Tomiyasu, but we have to continue to compete.”
The Arsenal manager is hoping captain Alexandre Lacazette is available for selection despite there being doubts over his availability.
Arteta added: “Obviously, there are private reasons that I cannot comment on but I have no other team news to give apart from the guys that we have discussed.
“We will see if he’s available. There’s a good possibility that that's the case.”
Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney remain sidelined.
