Arsene Wenger’s injury list has extended to another player out amid a calf problem midfielder Mikel Arteta picked up in the second half of Arsenal’s 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund last night which gave the Gunners a place in the second round of the Champions League for a 15th consecutive season.
The match saw Yaya Sanago, 21, score his first competitive goal for Arsenal before he was also dragged off due to a hamstring injury.
“It’s difficult to take on the chin at the moment. You go in to many games and need everyone available,” said Wenger.
The two injuries add to a list of players plagued with injury including Theo Walcott, Mathieu Debuchy, Mesut Ozil and the recent insertions of Jack Wilshere and Wojciech Szczesny who came off against Manchester United last weekend.
Wenger was recently criticised by prime shareholder Alisher Usmanov and when asked whether his team’s consistency was taken for granted, he replied: “I don’t try anymore to think what people think. What is important is that we are united.
“This team has a top-quality attitude and we have shown after the disappointment on Saturday that we were united in the game, determined and committed.”
The Gunners came into the Champions League group stage clash having lost both of their previous two games, the latest being the 2-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester United.
“We were more under pressure because on Saturday we played well but maybe we were victims of our generous attitude going forward,” he said. “Here we had a bit more urgency to defend, especially when we were 1-0 up.”
Following his answers, Wenger praised the performance of Yaya Sanago which saw him score his first competitive strike for the North London club. “He’s a young boy but he has presence, character and he’s naturally committed. He has a natural, aggressive attitude up front that is vital and very important.”
By Ollie Carroll
Twitter: @Ollie_Carroll_
