HOURS after the January transfer window closed, Mikel Arteta staunchly defended Arsenal’s policy NOT to bring in attacking reinforcements in a press conference on February 4.
First, the Gunners boss claimed the decision was NO gamble, despite seeing Gabriel Jesus and Bukayo Saka struck down with long-term injuries and Kai Havertz his only fit centre forward.
Mikel Arteta’s reluctance to buy a forward in January has come back to bite him[/caption]
Pushed on whether Havertz could now play every game for the rest of the season without a rest, Arteta said yes, gushing over the German’s robustness and labelling him a ‘genetic powerhouse’.
On the failed recruitment push, Arteta added: “We are disappointed, but we have to move on. Nobody knows whether it is better to have done it or not. We’ll know at the end of the season.”
Eight days later, and Arteta already has his answer: It was an unmitigated, disastrous decision – one that sees the rest of their campaign teetering on the edge of collapse. Costly is an understatement.
Havertz – that physical specimen of a man who looks after himself properly – tore his hamstring during a training session on the club’s mid-season warm-weather retreat to Dubai this week.
It is very unlikely we will see Havertz again in an Arsenal shirt until the 2025/26 season begin.
The Middle East has often been a venue to trigger an upturn in form, a trip there in January 2024 almost spurring Arsenal to the Prem title only to be pipped on the final day by Manchester City.
Now, it must be the place of nightmares for Arteta, his charge to catch Prem leaders Liverpool and progress in the Champions League resting at the feet of his THREE remaining fit options: Leandro Trossard, 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri and disappointing summer loan signing Raheem Sterling.
With Gabriel Martinelli also expected to be out for at least a month with a hamstring strain, Arteta must survive for three months with NO recognised centre forward.
Martinelli and Saka will be pushing for a March return, but to throw them straight back in would be a huge risk – yet what choice does Arteta now have? A pit of despair he helped dig.
The blame does not solely lay at Arteta’s door – interim sporting director Jason Ayto will be taking some heat for his negotiation struggles in a poor first audition to take over from Edu, the Brazilian shocking Arsenal by resigning from his position back in November.
Arsenal’s injury crisis
Stars who are currently injured:
- Kai Havertz (hamstring)
- Bukayo Saka (hamstring)
- Gabriel Jesus (ACL)
- Gabriel Martinelli (hamstring)
- Ben White (knee)
- Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee)
Regardless, it is now on Arteta to fix. He is known for problem-solving during his five-year tenure in charge of Arsenal, willing to adapt and change styles to fit his needs, as well as being open to some outside-the-box thinking to get through the stickiest of sticky patches.
Of the three remaining fit forwards at his disposal, Trossard and Sterling have deputised as a false nine before – meaning Arteta can stick with his usual 4-3-3.
Nwaneri could also be tossed into that role having scored three goals in all competitions in 2025, with Arteta previously suggesting it is a position the youngster could end up in later in his career.
Arteta said in December: “There is a position I think he can develop into – No9.
“He has got the goal in front of him and he looks at the goal and he has a tremendous ability to put the ball in the back of the net.”
Arteta will need to rotate that three for the next month at least, having pushed the likes of Saka, Martinelli and now Havertz to limits that have seen their bodies crumble.
Left-back Kieran Tierney could be a left-wing introduction if required – the Scot has featured there a few times already this calendar year as a late substitute.
There is talk of 6ft2 midfielder Mikel Merino using his physique and stature as a makeshift central figure – a risk that even Arteta would have second thoughts over.
And in the academy, striker Nathan Butler-Oyedeji and winger Ismeal Kabia would be the most likely options.
Butler-Oyedeji, 21, made his first team debut as an added-time substitute against Dinamo Zagreb last month, while 19-year-old Kabia made his debut in September against Bolton Wanderers.
Arsenal play seven games before March’s international break, with three of those coming in midweeks. Between them, Trossard, Nwaneri and Sterling have seven Prem goals.
This is going to be a bumpy, painful ride for Arteta.
