Has arteta cooked our players?

Gunner89

Not a one off but noticeable trend

Saka - can barely start for England
Rice - nursing pain for months
Saliba - back issues, might need procedure
Gabriel - looks way off the pace
Timber - not deemed fit enough for the squad

Legit issues running through most of our spine, We really need to manage their minutes at the beginning of the season and need reinforcements

Coombs

Only one way to defeat Man City killbots

JazzG

There seems to be a big overhaul in the fitness team so am hoping things improve.

We have a big squad but even the bloody backup players keep getting injured! Madueke spent long spells out where he was backup for Saka. In defence White, Calafiori and Hincapie had spells out, then of course at the end Timber as well.

The only place where I'd say there was neglect was CM, I can't see why Norgaard didn't play more games for and that lack of rotation burned Zubimendi out and Rice. This is an area of our squad we need at least one player or maybe two.

Dom

JazzG There seems to be a big overhaul in the fitness team so am hoping things improve.

Arteta sacking all the club's doctors and physios and replacing them with Spanish mates is a sign Rice, Saliba, et al are about to find out they have various illnesses that allows them TUEs.

daredevil

I've noticed a trend since I started watching boxing - boxers keep leaving fights with bruises and cuts. I can't make sense of it - are promoters cooking their boxers?

Rohit

They are if they fix fights for battered and bruised boxers before the boxers have had time to heal.

None of us really know what has gone on behind the scenes but Saka's problems have nothing to do with the season gone. He was Arteta's most important player and probably played through pain in previous seasons that shouldn't have been ignored.

Bernard Woolley

Rohit This should be obvious to everyone. Saka, White, Odegaard, Timber are clear issues of overuse and Madueke, Calafiori were simply injury-prone players who mirrored their historical track record. I wouldn't be surprised to see Rice and Saliba join the first category next season.

daredevil

Rohit

So boxers only pick up cuts and bruises if they haven't healed from previous bouts? It's not an occupational hazard that can happen any time in any fight?

Bring Back Kerrea Gilbert

Yes. We have broken many of these players. I fully expect a dodgy start to the new season.

Gurgen

Wouldn't be surprised if we don't see Rice and Saka until November or so.

MistaT

I'm far less worried about Rice than Saka.

Saka clearly has massive issues with achilles tendonitis and likely some hamstring issues. Both of those don't easily go away, often they don't at all.

Rice's over use is a little different in my opinion. His fatigue seems like it will be more full bodied, and something that will be "fixed" via a solid month of rest (post WC) and then a full month of regaining fitness. So yeah, he can't be depended upon for early season.....not sure if I'm ready for a Zubi / MLS / Ode midfield, but perhaps it will force Arteta to let us play!

Dom

MistaT Saka... some hamstring issues

Saka's right hamstring has gone to heaven

Gurgen

Saka just needs to give us two more good years until Max is ready to rip everyone to shreds on a weekly basis.

Mirth

Saka didn't even attempt to jump with the rest of the team during the post match celebrations when the England players were running to the fans

Claudius

Everybody operating at the highest level is cooked. This isn't an Arteta problem. It's a problem of misaligned greed amongst the Premier League, the FA, UEFA/CAF/CONMEBOL, FIFA and even the teams themselves. Everybody has seen a fat turkey upon the table and they want to grab a leg, a wing, or a breast for themselves. And for us, we are experiencing this in two dimensions, which is what makes it harder -
a) we are a better team now than when Arteta took over, so naturally we will play more games, but
b) Infantino and his friends are all adding more games. There are the 6 Euro Nations League games that used to be meaningless friendlies, there are 4 more Champions League games, there are more teams and an extra round at the World Cup, and Afcon also recently went 24.

The only thing clubs can do is get bigger and bigger at this point. And not just an extra Norgaard. We need an extra Rice or Odegaard

daredevil

Until someone on the internet can show how to manage a top-flight squad competing for multiple honours, while somehow avoiding injuries altogether, I have very little appetite for these kinds of discussions.

As it stands, "player overuse" is an unqualified and ill-informed standard that has been plucked from thin air and then used to criticise professional managers for failing to meet it.

Injuries have always been part of elite sport. The idea that managers can compete on multiple fronts, play their strongest teams and simultaneously guarantee players remain injury-free simply isn't rooted in reality.

We used to get loads of injuries under Wenger aswell - was he also overusing players and demanding that his players track back?

Gurgen

daredevil the intensity of play is much higher now. Incomparable to the Wenger times.

Mirth

daredevil We used to get loads of injuries under Wenger aswell - was he also overusing players and demanding that his players track back?

You're kidding right? Why do you think everyone says the Invincibles era (2002-2005) underachieved?

QuincyAbeyie

daredevil Until someone on the internet can show how to manage a top-flight squad competing for multiple honours, while somehow avoiding injuries altogether, I have very little appetite for these kinds of discussions.

Lol. What does avoiding injuries altogether have to do with anything? Nobody has suggested that resting players will result in zero injuries.

Meatwad

farmers leagues winning.

daredevil

Mirth

That's not why we underachieved in Europe.

Gurgen

And yet players got injured then too.

Burnwinter

Gurgen the intensity of play is much higher now.

It's not even about the amount they're playing or at least not until they're injured by one of the 110% actions they're continually attempting.