Arteta Fears Injury Woes Could Undermine Arsenal's Silverware Quest

Mikel Arteta has expressed concern that his squad's pursuit for honors this season is being jeopardized by a worrying cycle of fitness setbacks and a grueling fixture list.

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Key midfielder Declan Rice did not travel for the Champions League trip to Belgium due to sickness. Meanwhile, attacker Leandro Trossard and center-back William Saliba are still on the sidelines.

There was, on a brighter note, better news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the Brazilian striker registered to their European squad. He comes in for the injured youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an foot problem.

"Practice, no because we don't have time to train. But clearly the fact that you are missing players, you are placing demands on other players more, there's a consequence to that and it's a really vicious cycle."

Dowman's issue is the latest in a long list of fitness problems for the club. Since the start of last campaign, they have suffered 95 player absences, the second-highest total in the Premier League.

Extended Absences

• Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are not expected to return until the new year.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz still recover from knee and "needs more time," according to the manager.

Arteta rejected the idea that training methods were to culprit, citing a lack of time for drills. He highlighted the strain on fit players, some of whom have featured over 150 matches in two years.

Recruitment Strategy

Despite a major summer investment over £250 million, Arteta stated the team is not looking to dip into the winter transfer market.

"At the moment we're just concentrating on getting the players back and hopefully it will be a question of weeks," he commented. "It's clear how crucial those weeks are going to be."

Next Challenge

The team suffered their first defeat in 18 games at the weekend, reducing their lead at the summit of the Premier League to two clear points.

Focus now shifts to the European stage, where a sixth group-stage win would all but guarantee a knockout phase finish. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could create a club record by finding the net in a fifth straight successive European match.

"We are disappointed with the outcome, but we have to move forward," Martinelli said. "This isn't like everything is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."