There may be a sense of deja vu around Arsenal at the moment, as they continue to be struck by injuries in almost every single position. The Gunners were famously dealt some cruel absences last season, which ultimately cost them a chance at the Premier League title, and the Champions League.
With a summer of business used to help improve the options available to Mikel Arteta, Arsenal have been able to cope better with the problems that have piled up. That's not to say it's been easy, though, with two fresh issues appearing for the head coach in recent days.
During Arsenal's win over Brentford, both Declan Rice and Cristhian Mosquera were forced off with injury problems that will be a concern. While the Gunners remain well stocked in the midfield, in case their club-record signing is out of action, the defence is a larger concern.
Looking ahead to the upcoming clash with Aston Villa, there are some key absences in that position, not least Gabriel Magalhaes. The Brazilian picked up a thigh issue during the international break with Brazil, which will now keep him sidelined for the next month or so of action.
If Mosquera is added to that list, then the options reduce yet again, but Arteta does have some ideal options to replace him. "We have to wait and see," the manager said on the defender's issues.
"It's probably the knee or ankle. We don't know. He could not really tell us exactly how it was, but he wasn't able to continue." One possible choice could see William Saliba return to the side, but that is all dependent on his fitness situation coming into the clash.
The Frenchman has missed the past two games with what was described by Arteta as a knock picked up in "bizarre" circumstances during training. Speaking before the Brentford game, the manager said his return was a "matter of days", hinting at a possible return against Aston Villa.
If Saliba is out, however, then that means both first-choice centre-backs will be missing, along with Mosquera, meaning another option will have to pair with Piero Hincapie at the back. The most likely replacement would have to be Jurrien Timber.
The Dutchman was called upon to fill in at centre-back when Mosquera came off against Brentford, performing well in that role. It's one that he knows well from his time with the national team, having been asked to play there several times alongside Virgil van Dijk.
That means a reprised role at right-back for Ben White, who could feature in the centre of defence too, but he did look back to his best on the flank against the Bees. It may mean some shuffling around, but it shows just how much stronger Arsenal are in terms of their depth options, even when struck by these injury issues.
"It's probably not one thing, but we can help the players and everybody in the league and everybody to do what we have to do, give it another day," Arteta said on the congested fixture schedule facing Arsenal. "Especially the teams that are playing so much in Europe. To everybody in general, I think we can do that because we're going to benefit from that.
"We've never had such a schedule on every level, not only in the Premier League, but every competition internationally as well. So we need to try to do that, please. I think it's common sense. I think at some point this becomes too much, you know, and the players are not machines. But we have to try to do that when we can."
Arsenal take on an Aston Villa side who are in top form, sitting third in the Premier League after recovering from a slow start. The Gunners will need to have a quick turnaround to get themselves fired up for such an important clash on Saturday.
