Arteta Says Arsenal Eyeing January Signings

• Mikel Arteta says Arsenal are “actively looking” for January additions
• Defensive injuries have stretched the squad ahead of Aston Villa at the Emirates
• Arteta credits Villa’s form and expects a tough rematch

Mikel Arteta says Arsenal will consider January reinforcements as injuries continue to test his squad.

Arsenal face Aston Villa at the Emirates on Tuesday with uncertainty in defence. Jurriën Timber, Riccardo Calafiori, Ben White and Cristhian Mosquera were unavailable for the win over Brighton on Saturday, a result that kept Arsenal two points clear of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.

Arteta said the club will use the upcoming transfer window to assess what is needed, even if completing deals is never straightforward.

“The window is there and I mean we are Arsenal and we have to be looking at it – ‘Okay, what do we need?’ And we have to be actively looking and then, whether we can do it or not, that’s a different story,” he said.

“But our job is to always be very prepared because something can happen, so hopefully it’ll be very positive.

“When you look across the other clubs, they have 24 or 25 squad players. Although we have had more injuries than expected, some of them not avoidable, we want to be better and we know how important the part of having the right availability with players is going to be this season.”

Arsenal’s squad depth has been pushed throughout the campaign. After investing more than £250 million on eight new signings in the summer, Arteta still has not ruled out adding again in January if the right opportunity appears.

Villa arrive with confidence and recent history against Arsenal. On Dec. 6, Unai Emery’s team ended Arsenal’s 11 match unbeaten league run with a stoppage time 2 1 win.

Villa are also carrying momentum. They come into Tuesday’s match after securing a club record 11th straight win in all competitions, and they know a result in north London could pull them level on points with Arsenal.

Asked whether Villa should now be seen as title challengers, Arteta pointed to their consistency and the work Emery has done since arriving.

“They are meant to be there when you look at what they are doing and how consistent they have been and what Unai has done with the club.

“They fully deserve that credit because they are doing it on the pitch where you have to show your level.

“But every opponent that comes here, we want them to suffer, and be as dominant as we were against Brighton for the majority of the game.

“We know we will have a tough match. We will watch the last game back (against Villa) and I have a few ideas on things that we have to do better.

“It was quite cruel on us, the way we lost it, but we have learned from it and we can use that as motivation and hunger in the right manner.”