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Arsenal's manager has expressed confidence that his team can continue to cope with player absences following revealing that attacker Kai Havertz remains out for a few more weeks.

Prolonged Recovery for Havertz

The German forward has been absent for months due to knee surgery. Originally slated to return earlier in December, Arteta explained the player encountered a problem when increasing his training and was unable to move forward “the next phase.”

“Our experience helped us build a team that is much more reliable and has greater depth,” stated the manager.

Tactical Decisions for Brentford Clash

This update presents a selection headache for Wednesday’s match against Brentford. The manager needs to decide between continuing to use Mikel Merino, who scored as a makeshift striker against Chelsea, or bringing back Viktor Gyökeres, who featured briefly off the bench as a substitute. Veteran striker Gabriel Jesus remains available after 11 months out.

Defensive Concerns Linger

More doubts involve centre-back William Saliba and attacker Leandro Trossard, who were absent for the Stamford Bridge game. As a result, summer signings Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapié will probably start again in the backline for the Premier League front-runners.

The manager is convinced the substantial investment on reinforcements in the last transfer window has resulted in a far better place to deal with such setbacks.

Greater Options Key to Premier League Pursuit

In response if more options was aiding their league challenge, the manager agreed. “Absolutely, because this season has been worse in some areas, and now the situation with the defence,” he continued.

“We learned from the past that we must deploy players in different positions, and they must be capable to fulfil different roles if we are to fight at the top. And the case of Mikel Merino.”

Manager’s Sympathy for Suffering Havertz

Speaking about the setback highlighted by national team coach Julian Nagelsmann, the manager gave more insight. “His recovery was progressing. He was unable to progress to the subsequent stage and now it appears like we have solved that issue.”

He shared his eagerness to see him return. “We’re all desperate to have him. Honestly, he is a footballer who, for me, I admire greatly for the qualities he offers to the team, but his mentality, his personality. I observe his frustration while sidelined.”

“His fitness history is phenomenal, he's usually fit, and I am eagerly awaiting to have him back involved on the pitch because I believe it’s going to be a significant uplift.”