How Arsenal and Tottenham injury woes compare after Ange Postecoglou 'dig' at rivals

Arsenal and Tottenham have endured the joint-second worst injury woes in the Premier League so far this season, according to a new table.

Both north London rivals have struggled notably with fitness issues in the first half of the current campaign, focused particularly on their defensive ranks.

Mikel Arteta and Ange Postecoglou have both needed to get creative in order to compensate for those injury problems, which contributed to Arsenal falling well off the pace in the title race before a post-November international break resurgence and Spurs sinking to 11th place after winning just one of their last eight matches across all competitions.

Tottenham’s ongoing defensive injury crisis has reached its nadir this week, with first-choice centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven both injured again on their respective returns to action in the 4-3 defeat by Chelsea last weekend.

Ben Davies is also out with a hamstring problem, leading the under-fire Postecoglou to partner Radu Dragusin with teenage midfielder Archie Gray in Thursday’s 1-1 draw with Rangers in the Europa League.

That makeshift partnership looks set to continue when Spurs travel to bottom club Southampton on Sunday evening, though Postecoglou has at least confirmed that Davies’ issue is “nowhere near” as serious as first feared as he awaits the likely latest prognosis on Romero and Van de Ven next week.

Along with that duo, first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is also out at present along with the likes of Richarlison and Wilson Odobert as Postecoglou bemoaned the worst injury crisis of his managerial career by far, while midfielders Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma are both suspended.

Arsenal’s own defensive problems are expected to ease further in Saturday’s home clash with Everton after Gabriel returned to training on Friday, while Riccardo Calafiori is also expected back from a groin injury “very soon”.

The Gunners looked to have lurched back into their own crisis as seven players missed training ahead of the midweek Champions League win over Monaco, though Jurrien Timber and Thomas Partey both ended up playing. Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu are their long-term absentees, with fellow defender Oleksandr Zinchenko also sidelined at present.

Postecoglou appeared to aim a potential dig at rivals like Arsenal with his latest comments on Tottenham’s injury woes on Friday, telling reporters as he defended Spurs not signing more defenders: “I’ve seen clubs lose one centre-back and people call it an injury crisis and it is because your centre-back pairing is crucial.

“In the top teams, your pairing is a constant and teams that don’t have those constants you really struggle even when you miss one. We are missing three. Of course, it is going to affect us and our ability to play the way we want to. You can’t have six centre-backs in a Premier League squad of 25.”

He also said earlier this month: “I’ve seen so much violin-playing over [other teams having] one centre-back out, but we’re just supposed to get on with it.”

A new table presented by Sky Sports - which looks at the number of injuries that have caused players to miss at least one game this season - show that only Brighton and Ipswich have had worse injury luck than Arsenal and Tottenham in the Premier League in 2024/25.

Brighton and Ipswich top the standings with 17 injuries each that have caused players to miss at least one game, while Arsenal and Tottenham are next with 16 apiece followed by Aston Villa on 15.

Manchester City are sixth with 14, with their injury issues mounting once again ahead of Sunday’s derby clash with United and amid a dreadful run of form that has seen the crisis-stricken defending champions win just one and lose seven of their last 10 matches across all competitions.

United are then placed among a gaggle of five teams on 11, joining Crystal Palace, Leicester, Liverpool and Southampton.

Newcastle and Wolves have had 10 each, with Bournemouth, Everton and Fulham all next on nine. West London rivals Chelsea and Brentford are next on eight each as they prepare to meet on Sunday, with Nottingham Forest on six.

Concerningly for the under-pressure Julen Lopetegui is West Ham’s place at the bottom of the Sky table with only five injuries that have caused players to miss at least one game, meaning their ongoing struggles this term cannot be blamed on fitness issues despite headline summer signing Niclas Fullkrug only just on the cusp of returning from a long-term Achilles injury.