Injured Arsenal stars' desperation revealed as Mikel Arteta admits ‘worst part’ of job

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Mikel Arteta has shared some intriguing Arsenal updates during his Friday morning press conference, with the latest injury news taking centre stage. The Gunners have been plagued by fitness issues throughout the season, but a deep squad has helped them cope admirably.

Bukayo Saka , Pierro Hincapie and Ben White are among those who have been sidelined, although all three are now back in action. However, Noni Madueke, William Saliba and Kai Havertz are currently grappling with injuries and have already been ruled out of Saturday's showdown against Burnley.

Despite frequently having several key players missing for each match, Arteta is still leaving established names out of matchday squads and on the bench. With that in mind, Mirror Football has compiled the main points from Arteta's most recent press conference.

The majority of managers would probably say that losing a match is the worst part of the job, but Arsenal and Arteta don't really know what that feels like. The Gunners are currently enjoying an 11-game unbeaten run, with only one of those ending in a draw. They also kept clean sheets in all six of their victories in October.

Ideally, managers don't like to make many changes to a winning team, but the fixture schedule often necessitates it. Arteta rarely rotates his squad, but he did make sweeping changes against Brighton earlier this week, and several impressive performances could pose selection headaches.

Arteta, when asked if selecting the team was the most challenging part of his job, responded with a revealing statement.

"No I cannot say that," he told reporters. "It is the worst part in terms of the decision with certain players when you don't allow them to play. I'm not judging every decision they make, at the moment we are dealing with it in a really positive way."

He further added on managing players' disappointment at not playing: "Well it's an education that probably you get. You know that 11 players playing, and another 11 know they're not going to start the game."

Arteta had five fitness concerns earlier this week, but only Saliba and Gabriel Martinelli missed out against Brighton . With their next match just a few days away, it's no surprise they remain unavailable.

"No, I think we have the same ones," he said when asked about any new injuries. "Martinelli's still out. Saliba we have to wait and see. We have another training session this afternoon. And the rest is still getting closer. I think in the right direction, but not available yet."

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Both players sustained their respective issues in last weekend's 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace , with Saliba being substituted at half-time and Martinelli seen limping down the tunnel after the match ended.

As the November international break looms, players who have been sidelined with long-term injuries are likely eyeing a comeback towards the end of next month.

Arteta had previously hinted that stars like Martin Odegaard, Havertz and Madueke were nearing their return to action. When quizzed about the possibility of having them ready for the north London derby against Tottenham , Arteta shared some encouraging news.

"Yeah, I'm excited because they are tremendous players," the Arsenal boss expressed. "I see them work every single day, how desperate they are to be part of the team.

"The huge boost that is going to be for the squad to have and those players again, after such a long, long time, so really happy that I think it's going to be very soon."

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