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Arsenal's manager has voiced fears that his squad's pursuit for honors this season is being jeopardized by a worrying circle of injuries and a relentless schedule.

Fresh Team News

Star player 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, however, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the Brazilian forward added to their Champions League squad. He replaces the injured youngster Max Dowman, who picked up an foot injury.

"Training, no because we lack time to train. But obviously the fact that you are missing players, you are loading other players more, there's a consequence to that and it's a really dangerous circle."

Dowman's setback is the most recent in a long list of fitness problems for the North London side. Since the start of last campaign, they have recorded 95 injuries, the second-most total in the Premier League.

Long-Term Absences

• Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are unlikely to be back until 2025.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz continues to recover from knee and "needs more time," as stated by the boss.

Arteta rejected the suggestion that practice methods were to culprit, pointing to a shortage of time for drills. He emphasized the strain on available players, some of whom have played over 150 matches in two seasons.

Transfer Strategy

Despite a significant off-season spend exceeding £250 million, Arteta insisted the club is not planning to dip into the winter recruitment market.

"Right now we're just concentrating on bringing the players back and hopefully it will be a matter of a short time," he said. "We know how important those coming weeks are going to be."

Next Challenge

The team experienced their initial defeat in 18 matches at the hands of Aston Villa, cutting their lead at the summit of the league to two clear points.

Attention now shifts to the Champions League, where a sixth group victory would all but guarantee a top-eight finish. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could create history by finding the net in a fifth successive European fixture.

"We are frustrated with the outcome, but we have to keep going," Martinelli said. "It's not like all is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."