Arsenal star admits he 'can't remember' playing 'without pain'

Arteta has only used 25 players in the north London giant's 31 games across all competitions so far. Only 13 of them played for more than 1,000 minutes and four even played for less than an hour. William Saliba (2,790) has played the most minutes this season.

Nine Arsenal players have struggled with significant injury problems this season

Star signing Jurrien Timber is among the Arsenal players who played less than an hour after suffering a cruciate ligament injury 50 minutes into his Premier League debut in August. But he was simply the main absentee at the Emirates Stadium in the 2023/24 season.

Arteta also had to do without Gabriel Jesus (knee and hamstring), Takehiro Tomiyasu (calf), Thomas Partey (groin, thigh), Gabriel Martinelli (thigh, foot), Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf), Emile Smith Rowe (knee) for a long time. Mohamed Elneny (knee) and Fabio Vieira (groin).

READ MORE: All Arsenal players' salaries for the 2023/24 season, listed

Their injury problems have helped Jesus reach 1,281 minutes, Tomiyasu 686, Partey 367, Martinelli 1,819, Zinchenko 1,589, Smith Rowe 313, Elneny 25 and Vieira 283 out of a potential 2,790. Academy sensation Ethan Nwaneri (13) has played the least.

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Gabriel Jesus “doesn’t remember” playing without pain due to his injury problems

Jesus' injury problems even date back to the 2022 World Cup, when the Arsenal striker suffered knee ligament damage while representing Brazil in Qatar. As a result, the 27-year-old had to undergo an operation that kept him out until March 2023. But he also had to accept further setbacks.

Arsenal sent Jesus for another minor operation last August, which resulted in him missing the start of the season. He even suffered a further aggravation in January that put him out of bed in February. Arteta was also without his striker in November due to a thigh injury.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Arsenal star Gabriel Jesus, from his height to his girlfriend

Now Jesus has admitted he “doesn’t remember” the last time he performed without knee pain. The Sao Paulo-born American is keen to help Arsenal as best he can and finally get back to full fitness. But Jesus also feels like he “can’t complain” about occasional pain.

“I’m just trying to get fit and help Arsenal as best I can,” Jesus admitted, quoted by The Sun. “Unfortunately I had some problems this season and I hope I won't have them again next season.

“Sometimes I feel it. I can't remember the last day I played soccer without pain, so I can't complain. I'll just try to recover well and then that's it. Mentally I try to stay strong.”

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