🔗 Share this article Arteta Fears Injury Crisis Could Hinder Arsenal's Silverware Hunt Arsenal's manager has expressed concern that his team's pursuit for honors this season is being threatened by a concerning circle of fitness setbacks and a grueling fixture list. Fresh Team News Star player Declan Rice missed the midweek clash to Belgium due to sickness. In addition, forward Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba are still on the sidelines. There was, on a brighter note, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the Brazilian forward added to their European squad. He comes in for the injured youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an ankle injury. "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 consequence to that and it's a really vicious circle." Dowman's issue is the most recent in a extensive series of fitness problems for the club. Since the start of last season, they have suffered 95 injuries, the second-highest total in the Premier League. Extended Absences Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are unlikely to return until 2025. Midfielder Kai Havertz continues to recover from surgery and "needs more time," according to the boss. Arteta dismissed the idea that practice methods were to blame, citing a shortage of time for sessions. He highlighted the pressure on fit players, some of whom have featured over 150 matches in two years. Transfer Plans Despite a significant summer investment exceeding £250 million, Arteta insisted the team is unlikely planning to dip into the winter recruitment market. "At the moment we're just concentrating on getting the players back and with luck it will be a matter of a short time," he commented. "It's clear how crucial those coming weeks are going to be." Next Challenge The team experienced their first defeat in 18 games at the hands of Aston Villa, cutting their lead at the summit of the Premier League to two points. Attention now turns to the European stage, where a sixth consecutive group win would all but secure a knockout phase finish. Winger Gabriel Martinelli could make history by finding the net in a fifth straight successive Champions League match. "We are disappointed with the outcome, but we have to keep going," Martinelli stated. "This isn't like everything is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."