Injury Crisis Puts Arteta to the Test as Arsenal Faces Crucial Week

Following two consecutive defeats, Arsenal's hopes of securing Champions League and Premier League glory hang in the balance. The team must bounce back this week to stay in contention. Mikel Arteta has called on his players to demonstrate their mettle after the FA Cup loss to Southampton and the Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City. However, his selection options are severely limited due to an injury crisis. Eleven Arsenal players were unavailable for international duty during the March break, prompting speculation that they were conserving energy for club football. Nevertheless, Arteta's team selection at Southampton and a subsequent open training session on Monday suggest that the Arsenal boss is facing significant challenges. With a Champions League quarter-final against Sporting away and a Premier League encounter against Bournemouth at the Emirates Stadium, Arteta may need to delve deep into his squad to find solutions. Arteta was criticized for selecting Kepa Arrizabalaga for the Carabao Cup final, in which the backup keeper made a crucial error. However, he continued to back Kepa by picking him again at Southampton, where Arsenal's defense struggled and conceded two goals. First-choice keeper David Raya is likely to return against Sporting and Bournemouth. Ben White made an error that led to Southampton's first goal on Saturday. The England international had only recently returned to the starting XI after Jurrien Timber's ankle injury. Arteta is hopeful that Timber will recover in time to face Bournemouth on Saturday. Gabriel limped out of the tie with Southampton, casting doubt on his availability to face Sporting. However, he was back in full training with his teammates on Monday and is available for Tuesday's game. His regular center-back partner, William Saliba, replaced Gabriel but had missed France duty himself. It remains to be seen whether Saliba can play a full 90 minutes. Piero Hincapie suffered a hamstring injury while playing for Ecuador during the international break and was not involved at Southampton. Myles Lewis-Skelly played on Saturday, with Calafiori being the other possible fit option. The return of Declan Rice on Tuesday will be a boost to the team, after he was back on the grass alongside his teammates ahead of the trip to Portugal. Martin Zubimendi came on as a sub at Southampton, having experienced knee pain with Spain. Eberechi Eze is still unavailable due to a calf injury, while Mikel Merino is in a race to feature again this season after his foot surgery in February. Bukayo Saka's absence will continue against Sporting, but Arteta is hopeful he will return for the visit of Bournemouth on Saturday. Leandro Trossard's return on Tuesday is a boost following his hip issue. Noni Madueke avoided a bad knee injury while with England and came off the bench at the weekend. Viktor Gyokeres made a goalscoring contribution from the bench at Southampton and will be eager to face his former club Sporting in the Champions League on Tuesday. Kai Havertz, who played an attacking midfield role at Southampton, is another option at No 9, as is Gabriel Jesus, although he has largely had a bit-part role in Premier League and Champions League games of late.