Arsenal star "close" to return ahead of Bournemouth clash as Nketiah update given

Mikel Arteta has provided a positive update on Gabriel Jesus' recovery from injury, revealing the Brazilian is "not far off now".

Jesus hasn't played since before the World Cup after he required surgery on his knee.

Arsenal have managed just fine in his absence, maintaining their position at the top of the Premier League table.

However, Gunners fans have been eagerly awaiting the 25-year-old's return.

Whilst Arteta was unwilling to provide a timeline on his recovery, the Spaniard revealed he was "close" to a return ahead of Arsenal's clash against Bournemouth on Saturday.

Arteta provides Jesus injury update

Arteta said in his press conference: "He’s not far now. I don’t want to give a timeline but he’s doing certain things with the team and certain things outside the team.

"He’s not very close but he’s not far at all. He’s feeling better every day and the doctors are confident with the way the injury is evolving. We are in a good place with him, I think."

When asked if Jesus’ recovery has been as expected, the Arsenal boss replied: "I think it’s been pretty straightforward. At the beginning, we were really concerned with the possible extent of the injury because we were talking about a few options there.

"Thankfully it wasn’t that bad, but it was a long-term injury, it required surgery and it’s not [pleasant], especially the first few weeks.

"But knowing Gaby, he’s been through that before. His mentality is incredible and the team has done a really good job with him to put him in the position he’s in today."

Meanwhile, Arteta told reporters that Eddie Nketiah had suffered an ankle injury and was unsure of his fitness ahead of the Bournemouth match.

Arteta said: "We are assessing him. It's a bit uncertain what will happen with him. Let's see what will happen."