Arsenal ask for postponement of north London derby

Arsenal have asked for the postponement of the north London derby against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday evening.

The Gunners are currently missing Martin Odegaard and Folarin Balogun due to coronavirus while there are several more issues.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Nicolas Pepe, Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny are away on African Cup of Nations duty.

Meanwhile, Emile Smith Rowe, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Cedric Soares are injured. Bukayo Saka has also picked up a knock.

Hence, they are not in a position to field 13 senior outfield players. A request for postponement has been made to the Premier League.

There is a high possibility that their request will be accepted, given the precedence has been set in recent weeks with other clubs.

The Gunners are currently with just one fit central midfielder in Albert Sambi Lokonga following Granit Xhaka's sending off in midweek.

They are desperately looking to sign another central midfielder. Juventus' Arthur Melo has been touted to join them on loan this month.