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Mikel Arteta has voiced fears that his squad's pursuit for titles this campaign is being threatened by a worrying cycle of fitness setbacks and a relentless fixture list.

Fresh Squad Update

Key midfielder Declan Rice did not travel for the Champions League trip to Belgium due to sickness. In addition, forward Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba are still unavailable.

There was, however, better news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the South American forward registered to their European squad. He comes in for the injured youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an foot injury.

"Training, no because we don't have time to train. But clearly the fact that you are missing players, you are loading other players more, there's a knock-on effect to that and it's a truly dangerous cycle."

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

Long-Term Absentees

• Defenders Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhães are not expected to return until 2025.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz still recover from knee and "requires more time," as stated by the manager.

Arteta dismissed the idea that practice methods were to blame, pointing to a shortage of time for drills. He highlighted the strain on fit players, some of whom have played over 150 matches in two seasons.

Recruitment Strategy

Despite a significant off-season spend exceeding £250 million, Arteta stated the club is not looking to dip into the January transfer market.

"Right now we're just concentrating on bringing the players back and with luck it will be a question of a short time," he said. "It's clear how important those coming weeks are going to be."

Next Challenge

The squad experienced their initial loss in 18 matches at the weekend, cutting their lead at the top of the league to two clear points.

Focus now turns to the European stage, where a sixth consecutive group-stage win would all but secure a knockout phase finish. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could create a club record by scoring in a fifth straight consecutive European fixture.

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