🔗 Share this article Arteta Warns Injury Woes Could Undermine The Gunners' Silverware Quest Mikel Arteta has expressed concern that his team's pursuit for titles this campaign is being threatened by a worrying cycle of injuries and a relentless fixture list. Latest Team News Key midfielder Declan Rice did not travel for the Champions League trip to Belgium due to illness. In addition, forward Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba are still unavailable. There was, however, better news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the South American striker added to their European squad. He replaces the hurt youngster Max Dowman, who picked up an ankle injury. "Training, no because we lack time to train. But clearly the fact that you are without players, you are loading other players more, there's a knock-on effect to that and it's a truly dangerous cycle." Dowman's issue is the most recent in a extensive list of injuries for the North London side. Since the start of last campaign, they have suffered 95 injuries, the second-most total in the Premier League. Long-Term Absences Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are not expected to return until 2025. Midfielder Kai Havertz continues to rehabilitate from knee and "needs more time," according to the boss. Arteta dismissed the idea that practice methods were to culprit, citing a lack of time for sessions. He emphasized the strain on available players, some of whom have played over 150 games in two seasons. Recruitment Plans Despite a major off-season investment exceeding £250 million, Arteta insisted the club is not planning to dip into the winter recruitment market. "Right now we're just concentrating on getting the players back and hopefully it will be a question of a short time," he said. "It's clear how crucial those coming weeks are going to be." Next Challenge The team suffered their initial loss in 18 matches at the hands of Aston Villa, reducing their lead at the summit of the league to two points. Attention now shifts to the Champions League, where a sixth group victory would virtually secure a knockout phase place. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could create a club record by finding the net in a fifth straight successive Champions League match. "The team is frustrated with the outcome, but we have to keep going," Martinelli stated. "This isn't like all is going badly because we lost one game. So we remain united."