A patched-up Arsenal mired in an ‘unimaginable’ defensive crisis

How strange it is to think back to the summer transfer window and the reaction of many Arsenal fans to the club’s decision to spend around £40 million on a new defender. Riccardo Calafiori. Some fans have accused Arteta of being obsessed with buying new defenders when they would prefer to see a brilliant striker or striker.

Now, just a few months later, Arsenal find themselves in a situation where they would like to have even more defenders at their disposal. Jurrien Timber and Gabriel limped out of the game, joining Calafiori, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney in the treatment room. Meanwhile, centre-back William Saliba was suspended after receiving a red card against Bournemouth.

Arteta chose not to complain about the situation, although there can be no doubt about the extent of his personal disappointment. “It is what it is,” he said after the draw. “We had five injuries in the back line. We need to adapt to this, and we will continue to adapt. This is the situation we have.”

Other clubs, of course, also have injuries. Manchester United, for example, won’t be too sorry for Arsenal. Rodri will also not be at Manchester City. However, the football reality is that these twists of fate may prove decisive during the championship.

Arsenal know this all too well: in the 2022/23 season, the loss of Saliba to injury ended their title chances. Arteta can only hope that the current defensive crisis is not that serious and that his side are much more capable of dealing with the sudden disruption of their defensive plans.