Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed that club captain Martin Ødegaard will be sidelined for an extended period after suffering ligament damage to his ankle. The injury occurred while Ødegaard was on international duty with Norway, and scans have revealed the severity of the damage. “We will lose Martin Ødegaard for a while” the Gunners boss said. “The scans showed he has some damage, especially on one of the ligaments in the ankle.”
🚨🔴⚪️ Arteta: “We will lose Martin Ødegaard for a while”.
“The scans showed he has some damage especially on one of the ligaments in the ankle”.
↪️ Calafiori and Saka are fine and available. pic.twitter.com/Mm7SypAk5G
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 18, 2024
While Arteta remained hopeful that Ødegaard’s recovery won’t take too long, he couldn’t provide a precise timeline. “Hopefully not months. We will see” he added, acknowledging the uncertainty surrounding the midfielder’s return. The absence of Ødegaard, a key figure and the club’s captain, comes at a critical time with several important fixtures on the horizon.
Despite the setback, Arsenal received some positive injury news. Both Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka are fully available for Arsenal’s upcoming Champions League match against Atalanta. However, Ødegaard, Takehiro Tomiyasu, and Oleksandr Zinchenko remain absent due to injuries. Arsenal faces a tough schedule ahead, with games against Atalanta, Manchester City, PSG, and Liverpool in the coming weeks, adding pressure on the squad to perform without their captain.