Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has reaffirmed his desire to keep Joe Willock at the club – despite interest from Newcastle United. Willock missed The Gunners’ first game of the pre-season but Arteta was clear that the midfielder will be considered for selection going forward. Speaking after the 2-1 defeat to Hibernian, Arteta revealed that Willock wasn’t selected due to injury.
Mikel Arteta said: “Well, he wasn’t involved today because he had a little groin issue. He trained yesterday really well but we didn’t want to risk him. Joe is part of our plans, he’s our player and in the time that he is here we will try to make the most out of him. He had a great experience on loan. He was, I think one of the most important players for their survival.”
There had been reports that Newcastle had held initial discussions about the potential return of Willock for the forthcoming season with head coach Steve Bruce keen to bring him back.
