Arsenal FC v FC Kairat Almaty - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD8 - Source: Getty
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta looks on
Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta sounded concerned about his team's growing injury list after keeping their quadruple hopes alive with a 4-0 home win over Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday (February 15).
Three different Gunners players scored at the Emirates, with Noni Madueke opening the scoring inside 11 minutes before Gabriel Martinelli (19') and Gabriel Jesus (27') also got on the scoresheet. Four minutes before Jesus' strike, Jack Hunt had put one past his own goalkeeper to end the game as a contest.
However, progress to the FA Cup fifth round has come at a steep cost for Arteta's side. Injuries are mounting in midfield, with captain Martin Odegaard sustaining a knock in the 1-1 Premier League draw at Brentford last week, joining Kai Havertz and Mikel Merino on the sidelines.
"Yes, and especially because we are going through," Arteta replied if the growing injuries could scupper the team's quadruple bid." ... Before, it was the strikers, then it was the defenders, now it's the midfielders." (via The Daily Mail)
“We need some players back and fit and to give us not only numbers but different options in relation to the opponents that we have. So the quicker they are (fit), the better.”
The Gunners lead the Premier League standings by four points over Manchester City with 12 games to go, have booked an EFL Cup final clash with City next month, and are also into the UEFA Champions League knockouts.
"We are still coping with that but we need some players back and fit and to give us as well not only numbers but different options in relation to the opponents that we have, so the quicker the better," Arteta added.
The Wigan victory saw two Gunners full-backs join the sidelines, with left-back Riccardo Calafiori withdrawing before the match with an unspecified injury, while right-back Ben White came off in the second half.
"We started so well" - Arsenal boss shares thoughts after beating Wigan Athletic
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is pleased with his side's performance in the emphatic home win over Wigan Athletic that sent him to the FA Cup fifth round for the first time in six years.
During the match, the Gunners became the first Premier League team to score four times in an FA Cup match inside 30 minutes since the 1992-93 season. Having made eight changes to his XI, Arteta told the BBC following the win:
"We started so well. We made a lot of changes because of players who needed minutes and deserve minutes as well.
"I'm very pleased with the way we started the game and the intensity that we showed, the connections between players and the threat we had. The first half made a difference, obviously."
Arsenal next travel to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league on Wednesday (February 18) before visiting Tottenham Hotspur four days later.