Gabriel Jesus and Max Dowman absences explained as Arsenal duo left out vs Aston Villa

Gabriel Jesus and Max Dowman were left out of the Arsenal squad as they played in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Manchester United at St. George's Park. The Gunners were expected to bring at least one of the two players to Villa Park for the clash against Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon.

Both players were absent from the clash at Villa Park as Leandro Trossard cancelled out Matty Cash's first-half opener. Jesus has recently returned to first-team training following an extended spell on the sidelines. The 28-year-old striker suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury during Arsenal's defeat to Manchester United in the FA Cup third round at the start of the year.

He had been in a rich vein of form, scoring three goals in his previous four Premier League games. Jesus has since returned to action at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, earning himself a place in the matchday squad against Chelsea and Brentford but was afforded the opportunity for minutes under his belt against the Red Devils.

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At the end of November, Arteta provided an update on the Brazil international's situation. Speaking to reporters ahead of the 3-1 win over Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League, the Arsenal boss said: "Very good.

"He's doing everything with the team at the moment for the last almost two weeks. We're going to give him some exposure as well internally with some games, so he gets that fitness. But he looks really good in training, and he's going to be a big addition to the team."

A few days later, Arteta confirmed that he and Ethan Nwaneri had participated in a behind-closed-doors friendly. The Spanish manager revealed: "It did happen. Gabi participated, and Ethan as well, because he wanted some minutes."

He added: "We took the opportunity; they wanted a bit of exposure to competition, and providing that was very positive."

Meanwhile, Dowman has been somewhat of a rare sight for Arsenal this season. The 15-year-old midfielder made a few brief appearances at the start of the campaign, becoming the second-youngest player in both the club's and Premier League's history.

After Dowman made his senior debut – at 15 years, 235 days – against Leeds United, a proud Arteta told the BBC: "Very proud. Big credit to the academy and to everyone who has contributed to that journey."

He continued, "The families, hopefully they lived a beautiful day. The maturity and confidence and the joy he provides to the rest of the team is magnificent."

He concluded with: "Let's do it naturally and organically. We have to look after him and make sure we protect him as well."

Shortly after making history, Dowman was given another brief appearance off the bench in the 1-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield. Since then, he hasn't featured in the English top-flight.