
Kolo Toure could be given an immediate chance to reclaim his first team place at Arsenal after Arsene Wenger revealed that captain William Gallas is a doubt for Saturday’s game against Stoke City.
Toure found himself in a distinctly unfamiliar position on Wednesday as the sole survivor of ‘The Invincibles’ side – with over 200 Premier League appearances under his belt – was dropped to the substitutes’ bench.
Arsene Wenger even sought to reassure Toure in his programme notes that the decision should not be interpreted as a snub but the club’s longest-serving player was forced to watch on from the sidelines as Gallas and central partner Mikael Silvestre both scored in a 4-4 draw with Tottenham.
Gallas is expected to miss the trip to Stoke though and Emmanuel Eboue, who came on as a substitute against Spurs, could also be missing for the game at the Britannia Stadium.
“It looks like Gallas will be out and maybe Eboue too,” Wenger told the club’s official website. “We’ll assess him tomorrow.
“It is a little recurrence of the hamstring for William and for Manu it is his knee.
“He is not running properly at the moment. He still has pain there.”