Forest Injury Concerns for Arsenal as Gibbs-White Faces Late Test

Nottingham Forest head coach Oliver Glasner has confirmed that Nicolò Savona and Igor Jesus will miss Sunday’s Premier League clash with Arsenal, whilst captain Morgan Gibbs-White remains a doubt.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Glasner revealed that Savona, who is recovering from a knee problem, and Igor Jesus, who has a calf injury, will both be absent once again.

There was better news for Forest on Nikola Milenković, as the Serbian defender returned to full first-team training on Friday and could be involved at the City Ground, after being sidelined with bone bruising. However, Glasner noted that he has not played for several weeks.

The biggest concern for Forest is Gibbs-White, who picked up a minor injury in their last outing against Crystal Palace. Glasner said the midfielder’s involvement would depend on how he reacts to Saturday’s training session, but stressed that the problem is not serious and that he still has a chance of playing.

Losing Gibbs-White would be a significant blow, as he remains Forest’s most creative player. Last campaign, he finished as the top-scoring English player in the Premier League, bagging 15 goals for his club.

Nevertheless, Glasner insisted his side would be able to cope without him, pointing to their recent win at Aston Villa, which came despite the absence of two first-choice centre-backs.

He added, ‘Morgan is very important with the quality he has. But the team doesn’t just depend on him.’

The Austrian also acknowledged the scale of the challenge facing his side, adding that even with a fully fit squad, Forest would still face a difficult test as they face the Premier League champions.

The Reds have won just one Premier League match at the City Ground in 2026, and Glasner, who was appointed in the summer, has only won one match in all competitions this season. 

Glasner will be hoping to replicate his previous success against the bigger sides. The former Crystal Palace boss led the Eagles to FA Cup glory in 2025, beating Manchester City in the final, a game in which Eberechi Eze scored the winner.

However, history suggests the City Ground has been a difficult venue for Arsenal too. The Gunners have failed to score in three of their four visits since Forest returned to the top flight in 2022.

Mikel Arteta has injury concerns of his own. Piero Hincapié is expected to miss out with an ankle injury, while Martin Zubimendi will be assessed after Saturday’s session. Christos Tzolis remains sidelined with a hamstring problem, and William Saliba continues his recovery from a back injury.

Arsenal head to Nottingham looking to continue their perfect run after the international break, before travelling to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.