Arsenal dealt fresh Martin Odegaard injury concern ahead of Tottenham clash

Norway head coach Stale Solbakken has raised concerns over Martin Odegaard’s fitness, revealing the Arsenal captain has picked up another knock while on international duty.

Odegaard suffered a blow to his ankle in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Brighton last weekend and was substituted in the 73rd minute, with Gabriel Martinelli coming on in his place at the Emirates.

The midfielder seemed to shake off the injury and travelled with the rest of Norway’s squad for the side’s Nations League opener with Kazakhstan, but there are now some doubts surrounding his potential involvement in Almaty.

While Odegaard has been pictured in training with his fellow countrymen, it appears the former Real Madrid man has picked up ‘another bang’, in addition to the knock he sustained versus Brighton.

‘I don’t think that [the Brighton knock] is what it is,’ Norway manager Solbakken told reporters when asked of Odegaard was carrying an injury from the Brighton match.

‘I think it’s another bang, I was about to say.

‘I think it is something other than the bang, so to speak.’

A fresh injury to Odegaard would come as a major concern to Mikel Arteta ahead of Arsenal’s upcoming north London derby with Spurs in the Premier League.

However, there are still ten days to go before Arsenal’s trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Arteta’s men will look to return to winning ways after dropping points against the Seagulls.

The Gunners will no doubt be hoping the Norway national team treat Odegaard’s fitness with care and caution.

Solbakken believes Odegaard has grown both on and off the pitch in the time they have worked together with the national side.

‘He has experienced fantastic development as a player and a person,’ he added.

‘He has developed a lot both on and off the field during the time we have been together.

‘He got the captain’s armband straight away and is a completely different personality both on and off the field now.’

After a number of loan moves, Solbakken feels Odegaard has benefitted massively from finding stability at Arsenal.

‘He’s now got a “permanent club”, you can say, with a contract instead of being a “foreign player”, and it has been very good for his development,’ Solbakken continued.

‘We see that now and he is one of the highest profile players in the Premier League.’

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