Ahead of their Champions League fixture against Club Brugge, Arsenal have received another injury blow in the form of Max Dowman. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted his squad is trapped in a “really dangerous circle” of injuries.
The latest blow came when 15-year-old Max Dowman. The teenager has suffered ankle ligament damage and is ruled out for several weeks.
“With Max, unfortunately, he picked up an injury last weekend, and he had to come off, so we did some scans and he is going to be out for weeks,” said Arteta.
Dowman has been withdrawn from the European squad. In his place, the returning Gabriel Jesus has been registered for the trip to Belgium.
Arsenal already face a long injury list. Defenders William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, and Cristhian Mosquera are sidelined, along with forward Kai Havertz.
Midfielder Leandro Trossard also missed the trip to Belgium, alongside midfielder Declan Rice.
Arteta defends training amid mounting pressure
When asked whether intensive training could be driving the wave of injuries, Mikel Arteta rejected the notion.
“No, because we don’t have time to train. Today [Tuesday, December 9] we’ve done 20 minutes, so surely it’s not because we over-trained the players,” he said.
Arteta acknowledged the problem lies in what happens when players are repeatedly forced into action because others are unavailable:
“Obviously, when you are missing players, you are loading other players, and there is a consequence to that, and it’s a really dangerous circle.”
Image credit: Chensiyuan, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Challenge ahead as fixture list remains heavy
The timing could hardly be worse. Arsenal are aiming to maintain their top spots in both the Champions League and the English Premier League amid domestic cup commitments.
Their first-team depth is being tested. This is a fact made clear in recent games. These include a hard-fought 2-0 home win over Brentford that came despite fresh defensive casualties, and a narrow 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa that snapped an 18-match unbeaten streak.
Arteta says the club’s medical staff are working hard to manage the crisis but admits the stress on players could lead to further problems.
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