Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta warned that it was “dangerous” to leave William Saliba on the pitch for the full 90 minutes of Saturday’s victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, yet he had no choice after Ben White was forced off in the first half.
There were many aspects of the 2–1 win which infuriated Arteta. The team’s defensive resilience was lambasted while the attacking might of a side which needed two own goals to beat the division’s basement dwellers got a stern going over from the unhappy manager.
Arteta also took issue with the spiralling fitness crisis which seems to tighten its grip around the Gunners after each game.
Saliba’s surprise return this weekend lasted far longer than Arteta would have liked after White pulled up in the opening half-hour. Already without Gabriel, Cristhian Mosquera and the suspended Riccardo Calafiori, there was no opportunity for the centre back’s minutes to be managed.
“We had to risk Willy,” Arteta fretted. “It probably wasn’t the best call to play 90 minutes because we were buying tickets for another injury. But we don’t have anybody else. That’s dangerous, for sure.”
Saliba appeared to come through the contest unscathed and won’t be forced into action for at least another seven days as Arsenal are given some merciful respite over the next week. However, the outlook for White wasn’t so bright.
Arteta Provides Update on Ben White Injury
During a rare moment of thrust in a tepid first half at the Emirates on Saturday night, Wolves forward Hwang Hee-chan led a one-man charge upfield at the breakdown from an Arsenal long throw. The South Korea international was tailed by a cloud of red shirts but still managed to force a save from David Raya.
White was part of that chasing pack before pulling up clasping the back of his leg. Arteta revealed postgame that it “looks like a hamstring” injury for the returning right back and failed to provide any diagnosis on the severity. “We don’t know the extent of that,” he sighed.
However, the manager had an idea about the cause of this issue: overloading.
“Obviously he hasn’t played a lot of minutes because of the previous knee issue that he had, then the moment he started to get some momentum he had to play a lot because we didn’t have any other solution,” Arteta moaned.
With White now joining Mosquera and Gabriel on the sidelines, Timber has been robbed of any cover. The versatile Dutchman has been incredibly useful filling in through the middle but will now be needed at right back until White or Mosquera return to full fitness—which could very well be in 2026.
Arsenal’s Dwindling Defensive Options
| Player | Position(s) | Injury Status |
|---|---|---|
| Gabriel | Centre back | Out until late December |
| Cristhian Mosquera | Centre back/right back | Out until early January |
| Ben White | Right back/centre back | Out |
| William Saliba | Centre back | Fit but only just back from injury |
| Jurriën Timber | Right back/centre back | Fit but not 100% |
| Riccardo Calafiori | Left back/centre back | Returning from suspension |
| Piero Hincapié | Left back/centre back | Fit |
| Myles Lewis-Skelly | Left back | Fit |
READ THE LATEST ARSENAL NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS AND MORE
This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘That’s Dangerous’—Mikel Arteta Flags Grave Injury Concern On Top of Ben White Blow.