Arsenal wonderkid Marli Salmon, 17, braced for Carabao Cup bow after Ben White injury as Arteta faces selection dilemma

ARSENAL wonderkid Marli Salmon could be handed a surprise Carabao Cup start after Ben White picked up a groin problem. SunSport understands White will be assessed ahead of Tuesday night’s trip to Ipswich after being forced off at half-time during yesterday’s 2-0 win over Sunderland. Salmon, 17, gets stuck into the action for Arsenal Under-21s against Chelsea yesterday as he continues his development at Hale End Credit: Getty Arteta handed Salmon his debut last season against Club Brugge Credit: Getty Jurrien Timber replaced him at half-time in the 2-0 win against Sunderland yesterday, but the Dutchman is unlikely to be risked from the start after only recently returning from injury. That could leave Mikel Arteta with a major selection headache at right-back and force the Arsenal boss to turn to highly-rated academy star Salmon. Sign up for the Arsenal newsletter Thank you! The 17-year-old was in action for the Under-21s against Chelsea yesterday as he continues to impress after making his senior breakthrough last season. Salmon has trained regularly with Arteta’s first team for months and could now be in line for his first competitive appearance of the campaign. Timber would normally be Arsenal’s first-choice right-back, but his own injury problems have restricted him to just three appearances in the last six months. One of those came as a late substitute in the Champions League final defeat on penalties against Paris Saint-Germain in May. The 25-year-old was rushed back from injury and subsequently missed the Netherlands’ World Cup campaign as a result. White, meanwhile, had started the season strongly before the groin issue forced him out at the interval against Sunderland. Most read in Sport BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK Ben White was forced off with injury against Sunderland yesterday Credit: Getty Jurrien Timber has had an injury hampered 2026 so far and is not yet 100 per cent fit Credit: Getty And with Cristhian Mosquera also sidelined while recovering from a hamstring strain suffered against Aston Villa at the end of last month, Arteta’s right-back options are suddenly looking thin. Salmon could therefore get another taste of senior football barely two weeks after celebrating his 17th birthday by signing his first professional contract with the club. The Hale End academy graduate made his first-team debut against Club Brugge in the Champions League last season. He went on to make four senior appearances in total, also featuring in FA Cup wins over Portsmouth, Wigan and Mansfield. Salmon came through the same Arsenal age group as fellow wonderkid Max Dowman and has spent much of the past few months around Arteta’s senior squad. Now, with White facing a fitness check, Timber unlikely to be pushed, and Mosquera still recovering, Salmon is suddenly much closer to a first-team call-up than he might have expected. Comment now