Arteta suggests young Arsenal forwards will get a chance to impress amid injury nightmare | OneFootball

Mikel Arteta has suggested that Arsenal’s youngsters will get an opportunity to impress amid the injury crisis in attack.

Arsenal are without Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, GabrIel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus at present, leaving just three current first-team attackers in Leandro Trossard, Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri available.

Charles Sagoe Jr is among the young options Arteta has, having been recalled from his loan spell at Shrewsbury Town in January.

And the Gunners boss hinted he and others such as Nathan Butler-Oyedeji and Ismeal Kabia, who have been in training with the first-team, could be part of the solution to his side’s injury nightmare.

On Sagoe Jr, he said: “He’s certainly training with us so any player now that is obviously in this position, the same with the others, they will have opportunities.

“All the options are welcome. You never know what’s going to happen. We’re going to have to be creative.

“We’ll go day by day because I don’t know what the next challenge is going to be or what the next opportunity is going to be.

“We have won a lot of games as well with playing Leo as a nine and other players playing together.

“We will find the right solutions.”

Arsenal failed to bring in another forward in January despite their efforts to do so but Arteta insists his side did not have a lack of options before the injuries came about.

“I understand it (the concerns from fans) but we had two strikers, with Leo three, along with Gabby (Jesus) and Kai,” he said.

“If we look at other teams, do they have four or five strikers? I don’t know that there are many in Europe.

“We had the strikers.”

Arteta also admits he will change certain instructions for his team in order to try and get the best out of the forwards they do have available.

“For me it’s much more related to the intentions and behaviours of the team, not formations, in my opinion,” he explained.

“For me, a formation doesn’t mean anything if you don’t tell me what intents that team has. For example, we were talking about high pressing, you can play 5-4-1 and be the most aggressive team in Europe if you want to and play man to man every ball.

“Or you can just sit back 20 metres, very compact, and don’t jump to anything and counter attack.

“It is the behaviours. Certain behaviours and intentions of the team are not going to change, some others we will adapt to the qualities of our players.”