Arsenal got rocked by the last injury blow Mikel Arteta needed right now

The pressure is very much on Arsenal to keep on winning. On Wednesday night, Manchester City swatted Fulham aside, prevailing 3-0 at the Etihad, with all the goals coming well in advance of half-time.

After the Sky Blues' dramatic victory at Anfield last Sunday, Pep Guardiola's team have closed the gap at the top to just three points. Mikel Arteta's team do have a game in hand, but it is a tricky one, traveling to Brentford on Thursday night. Thus, ahead of this London derby, the last thing Gooners wanted to hear is further bad news on the injury front.

Arsenal's lastest injury blow pre-Brentford

As reported by David Ornstein and James McNicholas of the Athletic on Wednesday evening, Kai Havertz has "sustained a muscular injury" ahead of Thursday night's Premier League fixture at the Gtech. The German is also expected to miss upcoming clashes with Wigan, Wolves and then the North London derby at Spurs, but the issue is not too serious, with optimism that he'll be able to return against Chelsea on 1 March.

The last 12 months have been ravaged by injuries for Havertz. A year ago, he required hamstring surgery, before going under the knife again in August following a knee problem sustained at Old Trafford.

He made his comeback against Portsmouth at Fratton Park in the FA Cup last month, accumulating 253 minutes subsequently, including starting the last two Premier League matches against Leeds and Sunderland.

Havertz also memorably scored the clincher in the EFL Cup semi-finals, finishing off former side Chelsea, rubber stamping the Gunners' spot at Wembley. Nevertheless, this means he has featured in just 7.2% of Arsenal's minutes this season, compared to 81.2% from his first campaign at the club.

The 26-year-old is not the only player unlikely to be involved against Brentford on Thursday night.

Arsenal's potential absentees vs Brentford

Mikel Merino has undergone foot surgery this week, likely to be sidelined until May at the very earliest, making Havertz's return timely, as well as making his set back far from ideal.

Bukayo Saka, Leandro Trossard and Martin Ødegaard could all also miss out. Trossard hobbled off right at the end of Saturday's win over Sunderland with a suspected calf issue, the severity of which is not yet known.

Saka also sustained a hip issue during the warm-up at Elland Road a week earlier, and he is not expected to return until the trip to Tottenham in ten days' time. Lastly, Ødegaard has sat out the last two matches due to a knock, but the club captain is forecast to be involved in West London.

Nevertheless, given all the absentees, Arteta does not have too many players from which to choose. Eberechi Eze is expected to come into midfield, with Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli out-wide, supporting either Gabriel Jesus or Viktor Gyökeres through the middle. One can still construct a very dangerous front four but, with fixtures coming thick and fast, limited options is the last thing Arteta needs.