The Gunners still cruised to victory over Wigan in the FA Cup.
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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted injuries are becoming a cause of concern (John Walton/PA).open image in gallery
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted injuries are becoming a cause of concern (John Walton/PA). (PA Wire)
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Mikel Arteta admitted a mounting injury list could leave Arsenal vulnerable in their pursuit of silverware this season.
Arsenal booked their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup with a thumping 4-0 win over League One Wigan at the Emirates.
But Riccardo Calafiori suffered an injury in the warm-up and was unable to start, while Ben White was forced off in the second half.
Captain Martin Odegaard did not feature at all after sustaining a knock in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw against Brentford on Thursday.
Kai Havertz is set to be absent for at least the remainder of the month and Mikel Merino is expected to be out for the rest of the season after undergoing foot surgery.
Asked if he was worried his squad was getting thin, Arteta replied: “Yes. Before it was the strikers, then it was the defenders and now it is the midfielders (getting injured).
“We are coping with that. But we need some players back and fit, not only for numbers but different options in relation to the opponents we have, so the quicker they are back the better.”
Arsenal, four points clear at the top of the Premier League, will take on Wolves at Molineux on Wednesday before a pivotal north London derby at Tottenham next weekend.
Here they cruised into the fifth round to retain their outside chance of completing an unprecedented quadruple. Noni Madueke, Gabriel Martinelli, Jack Hunt with an own goal and Gabriel Jesus all found the net in the space of 17 first-half minutes.
Eberechi Eze, a £68million marque arrival from Crystal Palace, has faced criticism for his form so far this season and was withdrawn at half-time in Arsenal’s draw at Brentford – his first league start in two months.
However, on Sunday he provided assists for Arsenal’s first two goals and Arteta admitted: “Those players need those moments, and especially when we talk about the creative players, they need to feel that they are producing those moments. I am very happy with that. For the mood, for the confidence, it is really a good thing.
“The risks he took in the final third and the amount of shots that he tried to take too, it was really positive and that is what we want from him. He is already playing a big role. He has played a lot of games for us. And he will continue to do that.”
To managerless Wigan’s credit, they did well to avoid an even heavier defeat, a round after Manchester City put 10 past Exeter.
And assistant boss Graham Barrow said: “It can happen. Manchester City (showed in the last round) they can do it to anybody and City and Arsenal are the two teams you don’t want to play in this situation.
“You want someone good to come out of the hat, but I always said be careful what you wish for and we saw that today. It was probably relief at the end that the players showed what they were about in the second half.”