Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard suffered an injury worry in the Gunners’ Champions League win over Sporting CP and his international boss has spoken out about the issue
Norway boss Stale Solbakken does not believe that Martin Odegaard’s latest injury is anything to be concerned about. Arsenal were hit by another blow for their captain as he was forced off the field against Sporting CP.
Odegaard received treatment after suffering a knee problem and was soon replaced by Kai Havertz. He appeared to move freely as he made his way off the pitch but the Gunners’ star was missing from training on Thursday.
The 27-year-old former Real Madrid ace only made his return at the weekend following more than a month out. He appeared in the FA Cup defeat to Southampton before starting against Sporting.
Odegaard missed out on Norway’s clashes against the Netherlands and Switzerland ahead of this summer’s World Cup. He had been out of action since Arsenal’s north London derby match against Tottenham in February.
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Solbakken has moved to alleviate fears about any issue Odegaard may have suffered. Speaking in a press conference at Ullevaal Stadium, does not think it is a severe issue.
“He got a little one (bang) where he shouldn’t have gotten it, but I don’t think it’s pitch black,” he said.
“We don’t need any more setbacks now,” he added.
Former Norway defender Jesper Mathisen had feared the worst on TV2. “Those are scary images,” he said after Odegaard went down.
“Like watching a horror movie. A nightmare. He’s not sitting down for no reason. It would have been a big loss for both Arsenal and Norway if he had to go out with an injury again.”
Arsenal will hope to build upon their win over Sporting when they welcome Bournemouth to the Emirates. The north London side have enjoyed a more substantial injury boost after Eberechi Eze returned to training in the build-up to the Premier League clash.
The summer-signing returned from a recent calf injury that kept him out of the Carabao Cup final and England’s international friendlies against Uruguay and Japan. He was present on London Colney on Thursday and would seem to be in contention to return.
Riccardo Calafiori, who started against Sporting like Odegaard, was missing from the session, however.
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