Is Riccardo Calafiori fit to start for Arsenal vs Tottenham? Injury news latest and FPL update

Riccardo Calafiori has been one of several injury doubts for Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal side as they prepare to take on Tottenham in the North London Derby this weekend.

Arsenal are facing some injury problems within the squad as they prepare for a huge North London Derby against their rivals Tottenham this weekend. The Gunners sit top of the Premier League, but form is often thrown out of the window for games like these.

Neither team is expected to be at full strength, with Arsenal and Tottenham suffering plenty of injuries over the past few weeks, resulting in plenty of absences. Mikel Arteta is particularly struggling with the forward ranks and his defensive options heading into the meeting.

Gabriel Magalhaes is the latest injury issue, with the defender set for a spell on the sidelines due to a thigh issue. One of the options to replace him is Riccardo Calafiori; however, he’s been dealing with his own fitness concerns that may well make him a doubt for the game.

So, with that said, football.london takes a look at whether the Italian international could be available for this weekend’s North London Derby.

What has been said about Riccardo Calafiori’s injury?

Riccardo Calafiori played all 90 minutes of Arsenal’s latest match, which was the 2-2 draw with Sunderland in the Premier League. After that, the defender went away on international duty with Italy, where it became clear that he had picked up a potential issue in action for the Gunners.

Reports stated that Calafiori was training individually in the Italy camp, with a hip issue keeping him out of action for their World Cup qualifiers. That was despite other reports claiming that Arsenal requested for the defender to stay in London for further examination.

Calafiori later returned to north London, leaving the international camp early after it became clear that he wouldn’t be fit enough to feature. “He tried to be available, but he can’t force it now,” Italy national team boss Gennaro Gattuso said on the issues surrounding the Arsenal star.

Mikel Arteta gave an update on the star that won’t fill many with full confidence on his fitness and availability, as the manager said in his pre-match press conference: “Yeah he wasn’t available [in the international break], he’s been carrying a few things and we had to bring him back. He hasn’t trained yet, we have a session tomorrow so we will see.”

There is still a possibility that he could feature, if he returns to fitness in the days leading up to the North London Derby on Sunday, but it could be a tight turnaround.

Will Riccardo Calafiori be fit to play Tottenham in FPL gameweek 12?

There is some hope that Calafiori could be fit enough to feature for Arsenal against Tottenham in gameweek 12 of FPL. The defender’s hip issue was originally described as a minor problem, hinting at a possible return to the side if Arteta feels it is the right call.

Fantasy Premier League currently gives Calafiori a 75% chance of featuring. The Italian defender is priced at £5.8m in the game and is selected by 15.5% of managers.

With 61 points in total, those managers will be hopeful that the left-back will be able to make a return for such a big game.