Cesc Fábregas not ready to play yet, says Arsène Wenger

Cesc Fábregas will not make his comeback against Birmingham City at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, as Arsenal seek to improve on a disappointing recent Premier League run in the face of continuing injury problems. Although Nicklas Bendtner and Kieran Gibbs have recovered fitness and Theo Walcott has a small chance of playing some part, the manager, Arsène Wenger, will be without five players who could be considered as first-team regulars. Together with the captain Fábregas, who has not played since the 1-1 draw at Sunderland four weeks ago because of hamstring trouble, the goalkeeper Manuel Almunia remains out with an elbow injury; the defenders Bacary Sagna and Thomas Vermaelen will be sidelined for a further 10 days with thigh and achilles problems respectively; and the striker Robin van Persie, a long-term absentee with ankle damage, is not expected to return until next month. Fábregas's absence is surprising, given that Wenger had rated Fábregas as "50-50" to feature against Chelsea two weekends ago. The Spaniard will now target Tuesday's Champions League home tie against Shakhtar Donetsk. "Cesc is very, very short and unlikely to be involved on Saturday," Wenger said. "He has a little chance for Tuesday. Sagna is 10 days, Vermaelen is 10 days, Almunia is a question of days but Van Persie looks to be a bit longer." Wenger, though, was happy to play up the good news on the injury front which, as he admitted, has become something of a rarity. Bendtner has not featured all season because of groin problems while Gibbs is available ahead of schedule after a calf strain. Walcott, who hurt his ankle on England duty against Switzerland, is back in training."Let's not forget that since last November, Nicklas has produced here and there but never had a consistent presence because of his injuries," Wenger said. "Apart from the fact he went to the World Cup, we have not seen the real Nicklas Bendtner for a long, long time. He is the closest he has been to his best for a while. He was really, really handicapped by groin problems but they have gone now. "Theo might be involved on Saturday as well. He has normal training tomorrow. I might put him in the squad. I will see how he is but he looks very, very sharp. The only uncertainty is his ankle but he might be involved." Arsenal have taken only one point from the last available nine, the draw at Sunderland being followed by the defeats at home to West Bromwich Albion and away to Chelsea. "Teams come to Arsenal and hope to catch us on the counterattack," the midfielder Jack Wilshere said. "We have to show we can deal with that."