And while Arteta has not completely ruled out adding to a squad that has spent the first half of the campaign battling injuries, particularly at full back, he said on Friday morning of whether his club will be active: “”I don’t know. The focus is on the players that we have.
“If there is somebody in the market that we can afford and we believe they will have a real impact on the team then we have to be open for that possibility always. At the moment, the focus is on what we have.
Midfielders Jorginho and Thomas Partey have now entered the final six months of their contracts and will be free to sign pre-contract agreements with clubs across Europe.
Kieran Tierney could potentially leave the club, too, with Arteta maintaining doubts about the Scotland international’s ability to execute his specific demands.
But asked about departures, the manager added: “All the players that are here, they want to focus on performing and impacting the team and if something happens there then we will assess it.”
Arsenal remain without star winger Bukayo Saka for the trip to Sussex but Gabriel Jesus’ return to form has come at the right time for Arteta. Having scored once in 20 games, the Brazilian has six in his past four outings.
“It’s about supporting our players and the players know that they have to go through some periods sometimes which is not how they planned,” Arteta added
“But, as well, they have to believe in themselves and we have to make sure that if one day they doubt, we are there to recognise and make sure they feel from our side how much we like them and how happy we are to have them.”
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