Laurent Koscielny has handed Arsene Wenger a major boost after recovering from an eye injury on the eve of Arsenal’s Champions League opener against Paris Saint-Germain.
Koscielny was a major doubt for Tuesday’s match at the Parc des Princes after being kicked in the face during the final stages of Saturday’s 2-1 win over Southampton at the Emirates.
However, the France international defender appeared to have fully recovered from that knock on Monday, and trained as normal with the rest of Wenger’s squad ahead of the trip to Paris.
Koscielny’s return averts a major selection headache for the Gunners, who are already without injured centre-backs Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista.
And the 31-year-old Koscielny, who scored an acrobatic overhead kick against the Saints, was all smiles as he trained alongside new defensive partner Shkodran Mustafi.
Wenger also appeared in high spirits ahead of what will be his 17th consecutive season in European football’s top competition.
Arsenal’s midweek opponents, Paris Saint-Germain, are aiming to end a poor run of form which has seen them slip to seventh in the Ligue 1 table at the start of the new season.
The Parisians, who have dominated the French league for the past four years, have not won either of their last two matches – including a 1-1 home draw with Saint-Etienne on Friday.
Unai Emery is already facing pressure in France and Wenger will hoping to secure a positive result in what looks to be the hardest fixture of Group A, which also includes Basle and Ludogorets.
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