🔗 Share this article Mikel Arteta Fears Fitness Woes Could Undermine The Gunners' Silverware Hunt Arsenal's manager has voiced fears that his team's pursuit for honors this season is being jeopardized by a concerning circle of injuries and a relentless fixture list. Latest Team News Key midfielder Declan Rice did not travel for the Champions League trip to face Club Brugge due to illness. In addition, forward Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba remain 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 injured youngster Max Dowman, who picked up an foot injury. "Practice, no because we lack time to train. But obviously the fact that you are missing players, you are placing demands on other players more, there's a knock-on effect to that and it's a truly dangerous cycle." Dowman's issue is the latest in a extensive list of fitness problems for the North London side. Since the start of last season, they have suffered 95 player absences, the second-most total in the English top flight. Long-Term Absences Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are not expected to return until the new year. Midfielder Kai Havertz continues to recover from surgery and "needs more time," according to the boss. Arteta rejected the suggestion that training intensity were to blame, citing a shortage of opportunity for drills. He emphasized the strain on available players, some of whom have featured over 150 matches in two seasons. Recruitment Strategy Despite a major summer spend over £250 million, Arteta stated the club is not looking to enter the January transfer market. "Right now we're just focusing on bringing the players back and hopefully it will be a question of weeks," he commented. "We know how important those weeks are going to be." Looking Ahead The squad suffered their first loss in 18 games at the weekend, reducing their lead at the top of the league to two points. Attention now turns to the Champions League, where a sixth consecutive group win would virtually guarantee a knockout phase finish. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could make a club record by scoring in a fifth consecutive Champions League fixture. "The team is disappointed with the outcome, but we have to keep going," he stated. "It's not like all is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."