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Arsenal could receive a major lift in defence for their Premier League meeting with Sunderland on Wearside this weekend.

Ben White is expected to be fit for the game, while Jurrien Timber and Cristhian Mosquera could also be in line to return from injury for the trip to the Stadium of Light.

White, who missed the closing stages of last season because of a knee ligament injury that also ended his hopes of making the World Cup, looked uncomfortable late on in Wednesday’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Napoli. He was eventually replaced by midfielder Martin Zubimendi, with Declan Rice moving to right-back for the remainder of the match.

But the England defender has recovered quickly from that issue and is set to be available for Saturday night’s away fixture.

There is also optimism that Timber could finally feature against Sunderland. The Netherlands defender has made only one appearance for Arsenal since picking up a groin injury in the win over Everton in March, when he came off the bench for an eye-catching cameo in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain in May.

He has not played since then after suffering a setback during the summer and also missed the World Cup with the Netherlands.

However, Timber has returned to team training over the past few days and travelled with the Arsenal squad to Naples in midweek, although he did not take part in the match.

Providing the latest update on Timber before the trip to Wearside, Arteta said: “Let’s see, we have another training session [on Friday]. He’s been doing really well, he’s training with us for a few days and he looks in good shape.”

Another Arsenal defender who may be back against Sunderland is Mosquera. The versatile Spain international began the season as Gabriel’s centre-back partner while William Saliba was absent, with Saliba facing a lengthy spell out after aggravating an ongoing back injury while on World Cup duty with France.

However, Mosquera then suffered an unspecified muscle problem in last week’s 1-0 win over Aston Villa and was ruled out of the matches against Chelsea and Napoli, with £55million summer signing Ezri Konsa stepping in and impressing.

“He’s doing really well,” Arteta said about Mosquera on Friday. “Let’s see if he can get this game or the next one. It will be around that time I think.”

There was no fresh update on Saliba, who is understood still to be some distance away from a possible return. Meanwhile, Bruno Guimaraes was back in action after the knock he suffered at Villa, making a substitute appearance in Naples.