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Arsenal's manager has voiced fears that his team's pursuit for honors this season is being jeopardized by a concerning circle of fitness setbacks and a relentless schedule.

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, positive news regarding Gabriel Jesus, with the Brazilian forward added to their European squad. He replaces 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 vicious circle."

Dowman's setback is the latest in a extensive list of fitness problems for the club. Since the start of last campaign, they have recorded 95 injuries, 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 recover from knee and "needs more time," according to the boss.

Arteta rejected the idea that practice methods were to culprit, citing a shortage of opportunity for sessions. He emphasized the strain on available players, some of whom have played over 150 matches in two years.

Recruitment Plans

Even after a significant summer spend over £250 million, Arteta stated the club is not planning to dip into the winter recruitment market.

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

Next Challenge

The team experienced their initial loss in 18 matches at the hands of Aston Villa, reducing their advantage at the top of the league to two clear points.

Attention now shifts to the European stage, where a sixth group win would all but secure a top-eight finish. Winger Gabriel Martinelli could make history by scoring in a fifth straight successive European fixture.

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