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Arsenal's manager has expressed concern that his squad's chase for honors this season is being threatened by a worrying circle of fitness setbacks and a relentless schedule.

Latest Team News

Star player Declan Rice missed the midweek trip to Belgium due to illness. Meanwhile, attacker Leandro Trossard and center-back William Saliba remain unavailable.

There was, on a brighter note, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the Brazilian forward registered to their European squad. He comes in for the injured youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an foot problem.

"Training, no because we don't have time to train. But clearly the fact that you are missing players, you are placing demands on other players more, there's a consequence to that and it's a truly dangerous circle."

Dowman's issue is the most recent in a long series of injuries for the North London side. Since the beginning of last campaign, they have suffered 95 injuries, the second-highest total in the English top flight.

Long-Term Absentees

• Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are not expected to be back until the new year.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz still recover from surgery and "requires more time," as stated by the manager.

Arteta dismissed the idea that training intensity were to blame, pointing to a shortage of time for drills. He emphasized the strain on fit players, some of whom have played over 150 games in two years.

Transfer Strategy

Even after a major summer spend over £250 million, Arteta stated the team is not planning to enter the winter transfer market.

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

Next Challenge

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

Attention now turns to the European stage, where a sixth consecutive group-stage victory would all but guarantee a top-eight finish. Winger Gabriel Martinelli could create history by scoring in a fifth consecutive European match.

"The team is frustrated with the result, but we have to keep going," he stated. "This isn't like everything is going badly because we lost one game. So we stick together."