The international fixtures are in full swing at the time of writing and a number of Arsenal players have starred for their country so far. Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze and Martin Zubimendi are some big names that have scored for their respective nations so far, while a few others have put in exemplary displays. With that said however, all the focus from an Arsenal perspective will be on the return of club football, particularly the North London derby next weekend. The Gunners host our bitter rivals in what promises to be a heated affair on Sunday and for Mikel Arteta, he will be hoping to welcome back a number of high profile players.
The Gunners are currently nursing what would have been considered a full blown injury crisis last term. The attacking area of the pitch has taken the biggest hit, with six players including Ødegaard currently nursing injuries. Despite the significant list, there is growing optimism that the club will welcome a few of those players back. In his press conferences before the break, Arteta was upbeat about that possibility while a number of credible news outlets echoed those sentiments.
A cautious return is still the most likely scenario
Though there is a strong chance a few players could make it in time for Tottenham, history suggests we should temper expectations. Mikel Arteta has been characterised by his measured approach to player development and fitness throughout his reign, therefore it is unlikely that he would rush anyone back into the fold quickly. Even if they were to be passed fit, history suggests that the player would be eased into action. This is especially true for those who are returning from long term injuries which does not necessarily bode well for the Gunners.
Four of the aforementioned six players, Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz, Noni Madueke and Martin Ødegaard, would have been out for at least seven weeks by the time the Spurs match arrives. That is far from ideal and the physical nature of a derby will only complicate matters further. From that perspective it also points towards a higher probability that Viktor Gyökeres and Gabriel Martinelli could return for the game. Both players would have missed just under three weeks of football once the fixture comes around.
Three huge games that demand careful management
It will be fascinating to see how Mikel Arteta navigates our next three fixtures. A North London derby, a Champions League meeting with Bayern Munich and a match against Chelsea will test both the depth and resilience of the squad.
Tell me gooners, how would you like Arteta to manage the squad against Spurs, Bayern and Chelsea?
Let’s discuss in the comments.
Benjamin Kenneth
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I’m more interested in what the root causes are of all these muscular injuries. Is it lack of rotation over the past few years, poor medical staff, an issue with the training methods or maybe a combination of all 3? Can’t always be down to “bad luck” when there’s a pattern
No use bemoaning these issues when nothing is being done to improve it, in fact it’s gotten worse.
How many of our injuries this season have been muscular though? To my knowledge, most of the injuries suffered by our players this season have been impact-related, particularly to the knee.
As for muscular injuries, there have been brilliant pieces of research done on them. I wish I could share some. Basically today’s football has become more intense. Bournemouth coach Iraola spoke about it recently.
The modern footballer performs nearly twice as many sprints as footballers did 20 years ago. This bound to take a toll on the muscles. It’s even worse for teams that have European football because there’s little recovery time between games.
The only solution is having bigger squads and I think the club addressed that in the summer.
Quite the opposite to last season when most of our injuries were pulls, twangs & other non-impact types. This season, we’ve lost at least Havertz & Ødegaard long-term to bad fouls.
100% Jax. I don’t see what the club can do to prevent impact injuries. It’s a contact sport.Your opponent is going to clatter you and you may dislocate your shoulder in the process or suffer damage to the ligaments in your knee. I think it’s only referees who can do something about bad fouls.
People in the know revealed that the club did an extensive research on our past injury issues and came up with a plan. Two things that stood out was having a bigger squad and signing players without significant injury histories like Mosquera. I think that even the durability of Trossard played a part in him getting a raise. He’s hardly ever injured.
Situations dictate who to play when. If City win at Newcastle then it’ll only be a single point gap so Arteta will be obliged to unleash his full striking force. Is it turn by turn as we’re about to welcome back forwards the defenders are getting fresh injuries. Maghales & Calafiori.