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• Arsenal handed another injury blow as White ruled out for 'months'

  Mikel Arteta confirmed that Arsenal defender Ben White is facing "months" on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury. 

  White had been dealing with several issues all season and has missed five games in all competitions for the Gunners already this term. 

  After struggling through until the November international break, the decision was taken for him to undergo surgery in order to finally address the ongoing problems.

  It serves as a bitter blow for Arteta, with only Thomas Parety (13) making more interceptions than White (11) for Arsenal in the Premier League this campaign. 

  Though Arteta confirmed that the surgery was successful, White is set for a lengthy spell out of the team. 

  "It has been different kinds of struggles. It has never been the same thing, but we had to make a decision. He has not improved over the last few weeks, unfortunately," said Arteta.

  "We know that Ben is going to push every boundary, but it got to the point where we have to protect the player and we decided to do the surgery.

  "He agreed with that and it is going to keep him out for a few months."

  Asked for a specific time frame, Arteta added: "We have to see how he reacts post-surgery. I don't expect it to be half a year, but I cannot tell you exactly."

  It offers a concern for Arteta in the full-back area, with the Spaniard also revealing on Friday that Takehiro Tomiyasu is "going to be out as well for a bit".

  There was, however, some positive injury news for the Gunners ahead of welcoming Nottingham Forest to the Emirates on Saturday. 

  After not featuring for England during the international break, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are expected to be fit to feature against Nuno Espirito Santo's side. 

  Leandro Trossard will also be available for Arteta despite picking up a hamstring injury during the international break with Belgium.

  Defender Riccardo Calafiori is also in contention for Saturday's game after a month out with a knee problem. 

• Conte hopes for Ranieri's success at Roma after Napoli clash

  Antonio Conte hopes that everything will go well for Claudio Ranieri after he came out of retirement to take charge of Roma, but only after their Serie A clash this weekend.

  Ranieri was tempted back into management by a return to where he began as a player. His third spell at Roma comes after the club sacked two coaches already this season and with the team 12th in the standings.

  A trip to leaders Napoli is Ranieri's first task, and Conte is looking forward to meeting up with the 73-year-old.

  "I am pleased to see Claudio, I have great esteem for him and there is also friendship," Conte told reporters ahead of Sunday's game.

  "I am happy with the chance he has been given. It will be a tough game, for us and for them. Last year, Roma finished ahead of Napoli, they are in the Europa League and had a good transfer window.

  "They are not performing according to expectations and I hope for Claudio that everything starts to work after Sunday's game."

  The arrival of Ranieri in place of Ivan Juric brings with it not just the danger of the 'new manager bounce' but also upsets Conte's plans for the game.

  "When a team changes coach there is an important input on a nervous level," Conte said.

  "They are at the third change on the bench. It's inevitable that, if Juric had remained, we knew what kind of team we were going to face.

  "Now it's an enigma, we don't have much information nor do we know how they will deal with us. So let's think about ourselves, there is a desire and enthusiasm to continue this path."

  After a streak of 21 consecutive home wins in Serie A, Conte lost his last home league match (0-3 against Atalanta). Only once in his career has he recorded two consecutive home defeats in the competition: in November 2009, when he was in charge of Atalanta (against Juventus and Roma).

  Napoli are top of the table, but Conte knows it is still early, and with just two points separating the top six clubs, which includes the likes of Atalanta, Fiorentina and Lazio, for now, it is a different title race than usual.

  "Only 12 games have passed and there are many teams within very few points," he said.

  "We are doing well, but so are the others. There isn't one team which has distanced the others. Perhaps there is a little amazement in seeing some teams in those positions in the standings."

• 'If we get relegated, I will be here', says Guardiola amid Man City charges

  Pep Guardiola insisted he would stay with Manchester City even if the club is relegated as punishment for their alleged breaches of the Premier League's financial rules.

  Guardiola, who joined City in 2016, signed a new two-year contract extension on Friday, ending speculation over his current deal that was due to expire at the end of the season.

  The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.

  During his time in charge, the Spaniard has won 18 trophies, including six Premier League titles and their maiden Champions League crown last year. 

  He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.

  However, a hearing into Man City's 115 charges for allegedly breaking the Premier League's rules is also under way, but Guardiola said he will stay regardless of the outcome. 

  "I said that six months ago. If we get relegated, I will be here and next year we're going to come up to the Premier League. I knew it then, I feel it now," Guardiola said. 

  He also revealed that he agreed to fresh terms at the Etihad in less than two hours. 

  "I felt I should stay here. Of course, because they want me. For obvious reasons, for the results and because we've known each other for a long time," he added. 

  "All my decisions have been like that, what I feel in the moment. I don't pre-convince, I wait. I decided to stay here and in just two hours we did it [agreed the contract]."

  City welcome Tottenham to the Etihad this weekend on the back of four consecutive defeats - Guardiola's longest losing run in his entire managerial career. 

  The Citizens last lost more consecutively between March and April 2006 under Stuart Pearce (six – the fifth game of which was also against Tottenham).

  They have also won just three of their last 10 top-flight games against Tottenham (D2 L5) and are looking to win consecutive meetings with them for the first time since April 2019.

  Despite their run of form, Guardiola was quick to point out his side's recent success, most notably becoming the first team to win four consecutive Premier League titles. 

  "When you are here for nine years, with a long time at one club, you live all the scenarios, all the situations," Guardiola said.

  "You're able to lose four games in a row, but at the same time, you're able to win four Premier Leagues in a row.

  "The difference is that most of the teams are able to lose four games in a row in different competitions, but just one team won four Premier Leagues in a row. So it happened.

  "Did it happen in one season? No. When you've been somewhere eight or nine years, yeah, both sides of the run can happen."