Sol Campbell will decide in the next 48 hours if he feels ready to play for Arse

Sol Campbell will decide in the next 48 hours if he feels ready to play for Arsenal against Manchester United following the death of his father...

The England central defender has been left devastated by the tragedy and is in deep shock. His 74-year-old father, Sewell, suffered a stroke on Monday and was taken to hospital.

Sewell's condition improved to the extent that Campbell felt able to play against Internazionale in the Champions League at Highbury on Wednesday.

But Campbell heard late that evening that his father, a former railway worker, had died and manager Arsene Wenger said today that the decision about playing at Old Trafford on Sunday will be left to the player.

Wenger said: "We will leave it up to him. First and foremost our thoughts and sympathy are with Sol and his family at the tragic news. We will wait and see how he recovers from it.

"You have to leave these decisions to the players. It can be a kind of therapy if he plays. You can get away and concentrate on something else. It is how everybody feels in that situation that dictates the attitude. But it will be left to Sol.

"We will respect whatever he decides to do at such a terrible time for him."