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Mikel Arteta has voiced fears that his team's chase for honors this campaign is being threatened by a worrying cycle of injuries and a grueling schedule.

Latest Team Update

Star player Declan Rice did not travel for the Champions League trip to face Club Brugge due to sickness. Meanwhile, attacker Leandro Trossard and center-back William Saliba remain unavailable.

There was, on a brighter note, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the South American forward added to their Champions League squad. He replaces the injured youngster Max Dowman, who picked up an foot problem.

"Practice, no because we don't have time to train. But obviously 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 really vicious cycle."

Dowman's issue is the latest in a long series of injuries for the club. Since the start of last season, they have suffered 95 player absences, the second-highest total in the Premier League.

Extended Absentees

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

Arteta rejected the suggestion that training methods were to culprit, pointing to a lack of time for drills. He emphasized the strain on fit players, some of whom have played over 150 matches in two seasons.

Transfer Plans

Even after a major off-season spend exceeding £250 million, Arteta insisted the club is not looking to enter the January recruitment market.

"At the moment we're just concentrating on bringing the players back and with luck it will be a matter of a short time," he said. "We know how important those coming weeks are going to be."

Looking Ahead

The squad suffered their first loss in 18 matches at the hands of Aston Villa, reducing their lead at the top of the Premier League to two clear points.

Attention now turns to the Champions League, where a sixth group win would virtually guarantee a top-eight place. Winger Gabriel Martinelli could make history by scoring in a fifth consecutive European match.

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