Arsenal injury report – the season so far
It is still remarkable to me that, until the start of this season, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz had started only one league game together since December 2024.
Thankfully, all three have been fit and started each of Arsenal’s games this season as they begin the defence of their title with three wins.
The trio already have six goals between them.
Last season, they managed a total of just 10 goals, with Saka alone scoring seven of them.
Ødegaard only played 60+ minutes in 11 PL games last season. Saka only played 60+ minutes in 21 PL games last season. Havertz only played 60+ minutes in 5 PL games last season. If they do 25 each, it's better than any signing Arsenal can make to improve the attack.
Given how heavily last season’s success, therefore, had to rest on the team’s defence, it is notable that it is the back line that has taken the brunt of the injuries so far this season.
Arsenal went into the new campaign knowing they would be without William Saliba, whose back finally gave way during the World Cup.
He had been managing the problem for months, but his back fracture will take time to heal and Mikel Arteta remains unsure when he will return to the squad.
November has reportedly been pencilled in, but there are no guarantees.
“We don’t really know the amount of weeks he’s going to be out because it’s about a healing process and everything is a bit different – we know we have to respect certain timings,” Arteta said last week.
“The progression has been really positive in the last few weeks, but we need to wait and see how that one reacts when we start to put some load into it.”
That followed his assessment the previous week: “Wilo, obviously not much, he’s in conservative load management right now, so that’s going to take a while.”
Arsenal also knew they would be without Jurrien Timber, who continues his recovery from a persistent groin problem that has been a problem since March.
A small procedure over the summer has hopefully addressed the issue, but given the length of the injury, the club are naturally being cautious.
Speaking before the Chelsea game, Arteta said: “He’s in really good condition at the moment, he’s been a few weeks on the pitch and has been training with us, so he’s in a really good place. We will decide again tomorrow after training [if he is available for Chelsea]”.
Timber was not included in the squad against Chelsea, but could return this week at Sunderland if he does not make the first Champions League match of the season on Wednesday against Napoli.
Turning to injuries picked up this season, Cristhian Mosquera suffered a hamstring problem against Aston Villa.
At the time, his substitution was described as precautionary, with Arteta saying before the Chelsea game: “It was more precaution than anything else, so we’ll have to see in the session tomorrow how he feels.”
Like Timber, Mosquera was not in the squad, although he could return at around the same time as the Dutchman, if not sooner.
The only other player to have had a problem this season is Bruno Guimaraes.
He picked up a groin issue against Manchester City in the Community Shield final and was unable to shake it off in time for the opening game of the season.
He returned against Aston Villa but then picked up another knock when he came off the bench in the second half.
Thankfully, he was back in the squad for the Chelsea game, although he did not come on.
Over the summer, Arsenal overhauled their medical department and staff as they try to get to the root of the injury problems that have affected the club in recent seasons.
The impact of those changes remains to be seen, but the early signs are encouraging.
With a deeper squad and more players available, Arsenal should also be better placed to avoid the fatigue-related injuries that became such a problem last season.
