Arsenal left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko has provided injury update ahead of the upcoming season.
The Ukraine international missed all of pre-season with a calf issue.
“It is getting better now. Obviously, I have a little bit of time to feel completely better in terms of my injury that I received before. The target at the moment is just to get as fit as possible as soon as I can, and then of course to stay fit throughout the season, which is most important. That’s my target,” said Zinchenko while speaking to arsenal.com.
He clinched back-to-back Arsenal Player of the Month awards in January and February. He made more than 30 appearances in his debut season.
“To be fair it does, because Arsenal became my family very quickly, and during last season we shared a lot of moments and experiences together – both good and bad. We had a lot of very interesting times, that’s for sure,” Zinchenko said when asked about whether last pre-season when he signed felt like more than a year ago.
He also spoke about the new players who have joined the team in the transfer window, which includes the likes of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz.
“All of us are trying to help them as much as we can, and I think they already feel so good. We have an amazing team here both on the pitch and off. It’s really not a problem for new players to arrive. Everything is here for anyone who comes in, and of course they are great players, so they help us on the pitch like we help them off the pitch,” he said.
The number 35 is also organising a fundraising match to support the relief effort in his home country that will take place this Saturday at Stamford Bridge.
“A bit more than a month ago I was in Ukraine for the first time since the invasion, and me and Andriy Shevchenko went to the school which we are going to rebuild and we spoke to the kids. I’m not going to say to you what we were talking about because it’s scary. But I spoke with these kids and with the guys who are on the frontline and taking risks every single day,” he concluded.