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Arsenal's manager has voiced fears that his team's pursuit for titles this season is being jeopardized by a concerning circle of injuries and a grueling fixture list.

Latest Squad Update

Key midfielder Declan Rice missed the Champions League trip to face Club Brugge due to illness. Meanwhile, attacker Leandro Trossard and defender William Saliba are still on the sidelines.

There was, on a brighter note, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the South American forward added to their European squad. He replaces the hurt youngster Max Dowman, who suffered an foot injury.

"Training, 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 knock-on effect to that and it's a really vicious cycle."

Dowman's setback is the latest in a extensive list of fitness problems for the North London side. Since the beginning 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 the new year.
• Midfielder Kai Havertz still rehabilitate 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 highlighted the pressure on fit players, some of whom have played over 150 matches in two years.

Transfer Plans

Even after a significant off-season spend exceeding £250 million, Arteta stated the team is not planning to dip into the January transfer market.

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

Next Challenge

The squad suffered their first defeat in 18 matches at the weekend, cutting their advantage at the summit of the league to two points.

Attention now shifts to the Champions League, where a sixth consecutive group win would all but secure a top-eight place. Forward Gabriel Martinelli could make history by scoring in a fifth straight consecutive European match.

"The team is disappointed with the outcome, but we have to keep going," Martinelli stated. "This isn't like all is going wrong because we lost one game. So we remain united."