Managing Arsenal - William Saliba decision made as Andrea Berta sets transfer plan

William Saliba leaves the pitch with an injury during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Arsenal at Anfield. (Image: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

The first international break of the Premier League season is here, with Mikel Arteta and the members of the Arsenal squad not on duty for their countries having a bit of extra training time on the pitch ahead of the Premier League game against Nottingham Forest in just over a week.

Arsenal will be looking to bounce back from a 1-0 defeat against Liverpool in their last outing before the break. Dominik Szoboszlai’s free-kick was the difference between the two sides.

The start of the break, of course, included the end of the summer transfer window . That brings a lot of speculation over possible comings and goings as clubs scramble to complete last minute business.

Arsenal were handed an injury worry in the early stages of the game against Liverpool with centre-back William Saliba forced off the field after just five minutes. After the game, Arteta revealed that he suffered the injury during the warm up but made an attempt to continue.

The severity of the injury and how long it may keep him out for is currently unknown. The injury has seen the defender pull out of the France squad for the current international break.

It means he will be able to work with the Arsenal medical team on getting back as soon as possible. If the first game back against Nottingham Forest will come too soon is still to be seen.

It could give Arteta a decision to make. If Saliba is a doubt, does he risk playing him or stick with summer signing Cristhian Mosquera?

The Arsenal boss has said that he was impressed with the defender’s debut, hinting that he wouldn’t be afraid to turn to him if there’s any doubt over Saliba’s availability.

Arsenal have of course added another new defender since the game against Liverpool, but integrating him into the squad may take a bit longer than first anticipated. Piero Hincapie completed his loan move to Arsenal on deadline day, but has since jetted out for international duties.

The defender is part of the Ecuador squad for their two World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay (Friday, 12.30am kick-off) and Argentina (Wednesday 12am kick-off).

Those games mean that the earliest the player will return is late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. In reality, after recovery, his first training session with Arsenal may not come until the Friday before the clash against Nottingham Forest the next day (12.30pm kick-off).

It therefore wouldn’t be a surprise to see the 23-year-old left out of the squad completely for the game. Matches after that come thick and fast with midweek Champions League and Carabao Cup games meaning that the next full week of training for the squad won’t come until October.

While the summer transfer window has only just closed, in the life of a manager, forward planning is essential. There will be more concentration on what is going on off the pitch rather than comings and goings off it, but there will also be planning going on too.

In the first half of the season, Arteta will constantly be assessing his squad and planning on any potential January moves. He will work closely with Andrea Berta and the scouting team in identifying potential targets in areas he may feel need strengthening.

If that happens successfully then Arsenal can get ahead of their opponents in the race when the window re-opens at the start of next year.