Manager Mikel Arteta said Arsenal were in a “really dangerous cycle” after their injury crisis worsened over the weekend with news that teenager Max Daumann will be out for a number of weeks with ankle ligament damage.
Arsenal have 28 injuries, the most in the Premier League this season. The current list of absentees includes three centre-backs: William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães and Cristian Mosquera, as well as Kai Havertz and now Dauman.
Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, Ben White, Gabriel Martinelli, Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Jesus, Victor Goqueres, Noni Madueke, Christian Norgaard and Piero Hincapie have also been sidelined throughout this season due to injuries, and some have suffered multiple setbacks.
Adding to Arteta’s problems, Trossard, who was hobbled by the defeat to Aston Villa at the weekend and Declan Rice was also absent, will not travel to Belgium for Arsenal’s Champions League game against Club Brugge on Wednesday due to illness.
Gabriel Jesus, who is recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury, will replace Dauman in the Gunners’ Champions League side and could make his first appearance since the game against Brugge in January.
Gabriel injured against Olympiakos
Asked if his training methods were to blame, Arteta replied: “No, because we don’t have time to train. Today (Tuesday) we trained for 20 minutes, so I don’t think it’s because we overtrained the players.”
“But obviously when you’re missing a player, you’re putting the burden on other players and there are consequences and it’s a really dangerous cycle.
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Watch Arsenal players react to Aston Villa’s Emi Buendia’s latest goal that ended their 18-match unbeaten run.
“We have to differentiate between the types of injuries. There are long-term injuries and there are acute injuries. That’s something we always look at.”
“We’re playing a lot of games with a lot of players missing, which creates a lot of stress and leads to more injuries.”
Commenting on Dorman’s injury, Arteta added: “As for Max, unfortunately he picked up an injury last weekend and had to be out, so he has had scans and he will be out for a few weeks.”
If Arsenal win against Belgium, it will be their sixth consecutive Champions League win and they will almost certainly automatically qualify for the knockout stages in the top eight.
Mass damage creates other problems
Kai Havertz has not played a single minute for Arsenal this season
It’s not just the number of injuries that pose a problem for Arsenal. They continue to suffer injuries in position clusters as well.
This was most evident up front last season, when Havertz tore his hamstring in February after Jesus was injured again and the workload as the team’s only striker increased.
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Gary Neville believes Arsenal will feel Manchester City breathing down their necks, but it is not the time to panic as they just lost a tough game to Aston Villa.
A similar situation occurred at right-back, as injuries to Takehiro Tomiyasu and White ensured a tough schedule for Julian Timber, who had to undergo surgery in May for an ankle problem.
Arsenal paid the price last season for not being able to fill certain positions, especially up front. However, the problem has resurfaced this season.
Saturday, December 20th 7:45pm
Kickoff at 8pm
Havertz’s injury at the beginning of the season meant that Gokeres was given a bigger workload than planned. He then injured his groin, and midfielder Mikel Merino was substituted up front, as he was last season.
Merino played his role admirably, but having had to start seven games in a row for Arsenal and two for Spain over the past month, he was sent off at half-time in Saturday’s defeat to Aston Villa from apparent fatigue.
Arsenal December fixtures
December 10: Club Brugge (A) – Champions League
December 13: Wolves (H) – Premier League
20 December: Everton (A) – Premier League, live on Sky Sports
23 December: Crystal Palace (H) – Carabao Cup Quarter-Final, live on Sky Sports
27 December: Brighton (H) – Premier League
30 December: Aston Villa (H) – Premier League, live on Sky Sports
