Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has demanded that the Premier League makes a change to its rules ater competing in the Champions League this week
Tom Canton Arsenal reporter and Kieran Horn Digital Sports Journalist
13:39, 30 Jan 2026Updated 13:51, 30 Jan 2026
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has called for a Premier League rule change(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Mikel Arteta has expressed his eagerness for a Premier League rule change regarding the number of Arsenal players he can include in a matchday squad.
When questioned about having to exclude players such as Christian Norgaard, the Arsenal boss said: “At the moment there are two or three players that have to be out of the squad, that’s a reality, I cannot change that.
“These are the rules of the Premier League next season, instead of 18 outfield players it will do 20, I beg them from here, like it’s in the Champions League, because it’s much better to manage the squad, to maintain the value of the players, to maintain the mental health of the players.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has demanded a Premier League rule change(Image: Clive Mason/Getty Images)
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“Nobody wants to get out of the squad, so I beg them that if we can, between all of us, help us on that, we can bring them, we can deal with hotels, travels and all that, and that would be very, very helpful for everybody, because that’s the worst thing when you need to leave somewhere.
“But at the end you have positions played, I can play in various positions and you cannot overload certain positions and weaken them, so that’s normally the process to make that decision, because it’s never about, if it’s about how he trains, how he behaves, how he talks, how he helps everybody, it needs to be in every minute of every game.”
Norgaard clocked up 89 minutes in Arsenal’s Champions League victory over Kairat on Wednesday, which accounts for just over a seventh of his total playing time this season, reports football.london.
Arsenal have fostered a good squad unity(Image: Alex Burstow/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
“We have a really unique job, which is we have the ability to transform somebody’s life, career, which is great,” Arteta added. “But as well, every week we have to tell somebody, tomorrow you don’t do the job. You’re not even allowed to travel with the team.”
He continued, “So tell me a job that you do that. I cannot go to the kitchen tomorrow and say to two of the chefs, today you don’t cook, just go there and see how they cook or go home. It’s really tough.”
The manager added: “So someone that wants to feel part of that, he needs to be there. He needs to travel, he needs to be there and he has to have the feeling that he has a chance. When you take that chance away, you have to leave that player because he feels that he’s not good enough.”
Arteta further explained: “Because at the end, your decision is clear. I choose another 20 players in front of you. And I think this is something I worry about. Why? Because the demands on games are bigger. So we need bigger squads.”
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has had to make some brutal calls(Image: Bradley Collyer/PA Wire)
So it doesn’t make a lot of sense to restrict that, in my opinion. So I think we need to expand that and give the possibility to allow everybody to be part of that. And then we can make the right choice in relation to the game.
“And then we can manage better the minutes, the psychological and emotional moment, and then how we want to change the game. And I think it’s better for absolutely everybody. That’s my opinion.”
Currently, Premier League matchday squads can include up to 20 players, with different rules applying in Europe. Arteta can name a maximum of 23 players, but there are several other regulations that allow for many more names to feature throughout the competition.
No more than 25 players can be included in List A, but additional stars can be named in List B, provided that, as stipulated by UEFA ‘he is born on or after 1 January 2004 and has, since his 15th birthday, been eligible to play for the club concerned for any uninterrupted period of two years, or a total of three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan period to a club from the same association for a period not longer than one year’.
Arsenal arguably have the most depth in their squad in the Premier League, but that hasn’t prevented injuries from happening with the schedule remaining hectic.
Kai Havertz is back in the team at Arsenal(Image: Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)
Arteta’s concerns have lessened recently with Max Dowman appearing to be the only player out following positive updates on Jurrien Timber and William Saliba.
Speaking about the defensive pair, who missed the midweek victory, Arteta said: “Yeah, they are okay. Obviously, they have played a lot of minutes, they’ve been carrying a few niggles, and it was a really good opportunity for us to offload them a little bit and refresh them.”
Arsenal have been carefully managing Kai Havertz’s knee injury, with his start against Kairat marking his first appearance in nearly 12 months. Throughout his 45-minute stint, the German ace netted a brilliant strike and set up Viktor Gyokeres’ opening goal.
“Yeah, he’s ready, obviously he started the day,” Arteta confirmed. “Obviously it’s been a long period and now we need to manage that load and the games that we’re going to select for him to start, but there was no reaction to that.
“I think it was super positive, you could see straight away the impact that he can have in the team, so yeah, he’s ready.”