Mikel Arteta has provided a major update regarding the injury about Martin Odegaard ahead of their UCL encounter against Atalanta.
Arsenal are on the back of convincing victory against rivals Tottenham Hotspurs in the Premier League. They now travel to Atalanta for their European season opener on thursday. In the prematch press conference the Gunners boss Mikel Arteta sheded some light on the current situation of Odegaard’s injury. And it doen’t look good either for the north londeners. However having Declan Rice back after suspension would be a huge boost. Let’s just have a look at what Arteta said and also what next for Arsenal.
FIRST CHALLENGE PASSED
First challenge for Arteta and co this season was a north london derby match against Tottenham Hotspurs. And that faired well considering the fact that they came out 0-1 victors against their rivals eventhough the odds were against them. Gunners had some significant names sidelined like Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori. Arteta lined up with a make shift front line with Leandro Trossard leading the line and Havertz in a supportive role. Arsenal came out with a victory courtesy of a solitary goal from centre back Gabriel.
Arsenal had answers for all the questions Tottenham asked on the day. the chances were at a low but Arsenal capitalised on their chance got the victory. On the other hand their defensive tactics was praised by many pundits. Arteta even said that he was happy with the team’s performance on the day. He liked the way his team did ‘the ugly things’ to get the result over the line. Actually these sort of wins were you do anything in this world that’s possible to get a positive result out of a game.
WHAT ARTETA SAID?
Arteta speaking ahead of the Atalanta game confirmed that they are going to miss him (Odegaard). As per football.london the injury is serious and Arteta couldn’t say a particular time line for the absence. That means the possible return date in indefinite.
The Gunners captain had sustained an ankle injury during the International Break and was left with a swollen ankle. He said : “After recent scans the scans showed that he’s got some damage especially on one of the ligaments in the ankle. It’s something quite significant so we’re going to lose him for a while.”
Arteta during his press conference said “He’s our captain. He’s been one of the biggest and best players in our team.” He also went on to add that their game was hugely dependent on how Odegaard plays. And he accepted the fact that it would be difficult to ‘show a different face’. That is when you lose a player who is so influencial as their captain it is a big test for the team to adapt to a different style. Find and different focal point on which they can focus their game on.
In thgeir recent incounter with Spurs Havertz played the deeper role and Trossard lead the line. So we can see more and more tweaks and changes in their lineup aganst Atalanta and Man City.
WHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?
Arsenal have Atalanta and Man City away from home back to back and it is a huge task for the team. Anyway the confidence they gathered from their victory at the home of their fiercest rivals will be visible when they step out against Atalanta. The return of Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori will be added boost to Arteta’s side. It would be interesting to see how Arteta deals a life without Odegaard in their midfield.
In football always someone’s lose is someone’s gain. So youngsters like Ethan Nwaneri might get more chances during this period.
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