Hector Bellerin will not play against Manchester United, confirms Unai Emery

The mid-week cup fixture against Nottingham Forest allowed Arsenal boss Unai Emery to let some of his teenagers run free, but also allow players coming back from injuries to make a comeback. It saw Kieran Tierney and Rob Holding make their first-team debuts for the club, with Hector Bellerin joining the party later on. However, while there were a few other stars present at the Emirates, it was these three that really flourished.

Yet despite his impressive 13 minute cameo, Emery has admitted that the full-back will not get a chance to make his mark against Manchester United. The former PSG boss already has a selection nightmare on his hands, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Calum Chambers and now Bellerin back.

“I don’t think Bellerin will feature. Maybe in his mind yes, but we need to listen to the doctor and the doctor wants to do it progressively. Really tonight is the first day and the first minutes, and we are going to maybe share some minutes with the under-23s. It depends how he's feeling, but in his mind he's feeling very well and I think the first minutes tonight were amazing for him. We are going to use him with Ainsley and Calum Chambers to help us in this position,” admitted Emery, as reported by Sky Sports.

"The most important things about Hector are his attitude and experience. He's wishing to help us. When he was injured he was still a big mentality in the dressing room helping us," concluded the Spaniard.