Arsenal’s defense has recently resembled a game of Tetris, constantly shifting and adapting to cover gaps left by injured players.

Each week, a new makeshift player is slotted into the back four, striving to maintain a solid defense despite the challenges posed by injuries.

In their latest match against Club Brugge, it was Christian Norgaard who stepped up to fill the void, while Noni Madueke took the lead in driving Arsenal’s offense.

Just two minutes into the second half, Madueke capitalized on a well-placed cross from Martin Zubimendi, heading the ball into the net with precision.

Gabriel Martinelli added the finishing touch, setting a new club record by becoming the first Arsenal player to score in five consecutive Champions League games.

Arsenal beat Club Brugge 3-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday evening in Belgium

The win left the Gunners top of the Champions League table, but the injuries keep on coming

It kept the north London club as the only unbeaten side in this season’s competition at six wins from six games.

Very impressive, yes, but the result also virtually secured their spot in the top eight, which would see Mikel Arteta’s men go straight through to the last-16 and avoid the play-off round.

In the context of injuries, missing that extra round is so crucial for a club who are at their barebones at the back.

Daily Mail Sport’s ISAAN KHAN was at the Jan Breydel Stadium and he has picked out some key talking points from the game.

Norgaard steps up as injury crisis worsens

The matter of injuries grows more concerning by the day at Arsenal.

Tuesday’s injury toll had reached six, excluding Declan Rice’s omission for illness.

That rose to seven on the morning of this match with Jurrien Timber, who had travelled with the team, didn’t make the matchday squad due to a ‘kick’.

Riccardo Calafiori was also suffering with an unspecified knock, but still made the bench as a precaution for if needs must.

That left Norgaard to start at centre back for the first time at club level since May 17, 2021, a 1-0 defeat for Brentford against Bournemouth in a Championship play-off semi-final first-leg.

He was sharp on the ball in passing and stepped up accordingly, the Dane making a case for himself to fill in at the back in future.

Norgaard had a calmness on the ball and didn’t shy from tackles, but it was his ability to get on with the task at hand in a position which he is unaccustomed which impressed.

That was particularly the case in scenarios where the Brugge forward line caught Myles Lewis-Skelly out of position.

Amid the Gunners’ defensive crisis, Christian Norgaard played at centre back but he impressed

How Ethan Nwaneri can learn from Gabriel Martinelli

What a turnaround Martinelli has made, using the Champions League to springboard his Arsenal fortunes.

It was only in August when there were talks of the player being sold, and earlier this season he found himself on the periphery because of Madueke and Leandro Trossard’s exploits.

Before and after his strike from outside the area, he moved with vim and energy to progress play forward. Gone are those timid back-passes which were a feature in times gone by. With the options Arsenal have, he can’t afford to take the safe option.

Take Madueke, for example, who is a frightening prospect for defenders because of his uncompromising runs at them. He looks in one direction – and that’s forward. It allows the likes of Bukayo Saka a rest, something Arteta has struggled to do in previous seasons.

Yet, after these recent showings, whether he is to start or come off the bench as a ‘finisher’, Martinelli has an important role to play for the Gunners.

It is an important case study which Ethan Nwaneri can learn from, having slid way down Arteta’s pecking order.

The 18-year-old signed a five-year contract in August, with the north London club eager to tie down one of their most-promising starlets from the Hale End academy.

Gabriel Martinelli became the first Arsenal player to score in five consecutive Champions League matches

Martinelli has changed his fortunes with European football, but Ethan Nwaneri is struggling 

His rise had been rapid. Last season, the attacker made his first Premier League and Champions League starts, shone in the Carabao Cup, while scoring across all three competitions.

He won man of the match in January against Girona for good measure, capping his first European start with an impressive finish from outside the area.

The way he shimmied past a couple of the opposition defenders, before fizzing the ball into the bottom-left corner, was Saka-esque in execution.

Yet, 12 months on, Nwaneri is struggling to make the starting line-up, even in games such as this where Arteta made five changes from the side that lost to Aston Villa on Saturday.

Taking a page out of Martinelli’s book, though, can do Nwaneri no harm. He’s only 18, and time is on his side.

Gabriel Jesus makes long-awaited return 

It had been 332 long, arduous days for Gabriel Jesus since tearing his ACL, but he was back on the pitch.

And boy was he hungry to make up for lost time. The Brazilian had more touches than Viktor Gyokeres, despite coming on in the 62nd minute – and he struck the bar.

Gabriel Jesus was back in action, almost a year after the Brazilian striker tore his ACL

Just as promisingly, the striker’s fluidity of movement and passing with the wingers showed signs of a Jesus at his near best.

Arteta said: ‘So happy for him. I think you can see how much we all love him. It’s been a very, very difficult and long journey.

‘That quality in his first performance with us is something really impressive, and we’re all delighted for him.’

When asked whether he has a big role to play, Arteta replied: ‘Yes, especially if he continues to perform in the manner that he’s doing and the energy that he’s putting in training. I think he brings something else, and I was really happy to see that.’