Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta revealed that none of Declan Rice, William Saliba or Leandro Trossard would be available for Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Club Brugge during an injury crisis which he warned could be “really dangerous.”
The continued absence of Saliba and Trossard is no great surprise. Arteta warned after Saturday’s 2–1 defeat to Aston Villa that he would remain without the French centre back—and his first-choice partner Gabriel—for a “period of time.” Trossard was fit enough to come off the bench at Villa Park only to be forced off with a knock 40 minutes later.
Rice is more of a suckerpunch. The reliably durable midfielder had shaken off an injury doubt from midweek to play the full 90 minutes against Villa only to then be absent from training ahead of the trip to Belgium. Arteta confirmed that all three would miss out of the league phase match, although downplayed the severity of Rice’s ailment.
“No, so Declan was ill,” the Spanish boss revealed. “He was quite sick after the game, and he hasn’t travelled with us. William is still not available, and Leo again picked another knock in an area where he had the issue, and I don’t expect that it’s going to be long, but unfortunately, he cannot be here.”
Expanding on Rice’s situation Arteta joked: “I think that he needed more of a bed than sunshine because he wasn’t feeling good at all.
“So, yeah, he will have a couple of days to rest and to get his body right. But today, already, he was very keen to be able to play. But unfortunately, he’s not.”
Max Dowman Expected to Be Out for Longer Than Expected
Max Dowman will also be absent from Arsenal’s squad this week and for the foreseeable future. Arteta predicted that the teenage starlet would be sidelined for “weeks” with his ankle issue sustained during a friendly with Manchester United’s U21 side last weekend.
However, in typical Arteta style, it appears as though the Spanish boss has undersold Dowman’s absence. The Athletic report that Dowman will be out for around two months after sustaining ankle ligament damage.
Arteta: Arsenal’s Injuries Create Vicious Circle
Arsenal’s injury issues are nothing new. Arteta was pointedly asked whether his rigorous training sessions were part of the cause—it was a line of questioning he did not take kindly to. “Not training, no, because we don’t have time to train,” he huffed. “So, training is not there.”
However, Arteta did acknowledge that a proliferation of injuries are likely to lead to more fitness issues, as the players not in the treatment room are forced to take on additional strain to cover for their absent colleagues. “But obviously, the fact that you are missing players, you are loading other players more,” Arteta lamented.
“That’s a consequence of that and it’s really dangerous. The fact that we have some others who have long-term contracts that haven’t been with us since the beginning of the season. But, yeah, it’s a test for the team, and so far, we have reacted very, very well to that.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Really Dangerous’—Mikel Arteta Rules Out Three Arsenal Players During Injury Rant.