Arteta Hails ‘More Reliable’ Squad and Acknowledges Havertz Setback.

The Gunners' boss remains confident that his squad can keep managing with injury setbacks after revealing that star striker Kai Havertz will not return for several more weeks.

Extended Absence for German Star

The Germany international has been absent since the summer due to knee surgery. Originally slated to return earlier in December, Arteta revealed the player encountered a problem when increasing his training and could not progress “to the next level.”

“We learned, and we were able to put together a team that is much more reliable and has increased versatility,” commented Arteta.

Selection Dilemma for Midweek Fixture

This news creates a selection headache for Wednesday’s home game against Brentford. The manager needs to decide between persisting with Mikel Merino, who found the net playing out of position against Chelsea, or recalling Viktor Gyökeres, who made a return after a fitness issue in the latter stages. Veteran striker Gabriel Jesus is also an option post-recovery.

Fitness Doubts Remain

More doubts involve centre-back William Saliba and attacker Leandro Trossard, who were absent for the weekend encounter. As a result, recent arrivals Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapié are likely to continue in the heart of the defence for the Premier League front-runners.

Arteta feels the £250m spend on squad depth in the last transfer window has left Arsenal in a much stronger position to deal with such unavailability.

Squad Depth Key to Premier League Pursuit

In response if a larger pool of players was aiding their championship push, the manager agreed. “Absolutely, since the current term has seen more issues in some areas, and now what’s happening with the backline,” he continued.

“History has shown us that we must deploy players in various roles, and they need to be prepared to adapt to new tasks if we want to compete at this level. And the instance of Mikel Merino.”

Manager’s Sympathy for Suffering Star

Commenting on the setback noted by national team coach Julian Nagelsmann, Arteta offered more insight. “He followed all protocols. He was unable to progress to the next level and now it appears like we have unlocked that.”

Arteta expressed his eagerness to see him return. “The team is keen to have him. Honestly, Havertz is someone that, personally, I admire greatly for his contributions to the team, but his personality, his attitude. I watch him struggle being outside.”

“His availability record is phenomenal, he's rarely been injured, and I am eagerly awaiting to have him back with the squad playing because I believe it’s going to be a significant uplift.”