🔗 Share this article

Arsenal's manager has expressed concern that his squad's chase for titles this campaign is being threatened by a concerning cycle of injuries and a grueling fixture list.

Latest Squad Update

Key midfielder Declan Rice did not travel for the midweek clash to face Club Brugge due to illness. In addition, forward Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba are still on the sidelines.

There was, on a brighter note, better news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the South American forward registered to their Champions League squad. He comes in for the hurt youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an ankle problem.

"Training, no because we lack time to train. But clearly the fact that you are without players, you are placing demands on other players more, there's a knock-on effect to that and it's a really vicious cycle."

Dowman's setback is the most recent in a long series of fitness problems for the club. Since the beginning of last season, they have recorded 95 player absences, the second-most total in the Premier League.

Long-Term Absentees

• Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are unlikely to be back until the new year.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz still recover from knee and "needs more time," as stated by the boss.

Arteta rejected the suggestion that training intensity were to culprit, citing a shortage of opportunity for sessions. He highlighted the strain on available players, some of whom have played over 150 games in two seasons.

Recruitment Plans

Despite a significant summer spend exceeding £250 million, Arteta stated the team is not looking to dip into the winter recruitment market.

"At the moment we're just concentrating on bringing the players back and hopefully it will be a matter of a short time," he said. "We know how crucial those weeks are going to be."

Next Challenge

The team suffered their first loss in 18 matches at the hands of Aston Villa, cutting their advantage at the top of the Premier League to two points.

Attention now turns to the European stage, where a sixth consecutive group victory would virtually guarantee a top-eight finish. Winger Gabriel Martinelli could create a club record by finding the net in a fifth straight successive European match.

"We are frustrated with the outcome, but we have to move forward," Martinelli said. "It's not like everything is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."