Mikel Arteta bemoans Arsenal’s crippling injury list after Aston Villa draw
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Mikel Arteta hinted that injuries to his Arsenal squad are close to ending their Premier League challenge following a crushing 2-2 draw against Aston Villa at the Emirates. Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz fired the home side into a 2-0 lead but Villa fought back through goals from Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins in eight second-half minutes to deal a potentially devastating blow to Arsenal’s title tilt.
Arsenal have been rocked by injuries to a host of players this season, with Bukayo Saka out until at least March following hamstring surgery, while Gabriel Jesus is sidelined for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury. Saka’s teenage understudy Ethan Nwaneri is also absent, while Arteta was dealt another injury blow on the eve of Saturday’s fixture with William Saliba unable to take part. The defender joins Riccardo Calafiori, Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu in the treatment room.
Arteta’s substitutes consisted of three academy players, three left-backs, Jorginho and Raheem Sterling. Only the former was introduced, with eight minutes left, as Arsenal chased a winner. In contrast, Darwin Nunez came off the bench to score twice for Liverpool in a stoppage-time victory at Brentford.
The Reds now lead Arsenal by six points with a game in hand, and when asked how pivotal a day this could prove in their bid for a first championship since 2004, Arteta, who was overseeing Arsenal’s third match in six days, said: “There are moments, and obviously they (Liverpool) managed to do that (win).
