Arsenal return to Premier League action this weekend as they face Tottenham in a North London Derby at Emirates Stadium. The Gunners sit four points clear at the top of the table and that is with three starters absent because of injury, though Mikel Arteta is hopeful several key players will return over the busy run-in.
Spurs, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Everton are just a few teams Arsenal are set to face before Christmas. With so many fixtures in a short space of time, Arteta’s squad is set to be tested significantly.
Work done by sporting director Andrea Berta has meant they have been able to cope thus far, but Arteta will certainly want the entirety of his squad available. With that being said, football.london has taken a look at the latest Arsenal injury updates.
Martin Odegaard
There is hope that Odegaard can return from a six-week injury absence for this weekend’s North London Derby with it said he has been back in Arsenal team training. He was away with Norway over the international break in a non-playing capacity as they qualified for the World Cup.
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Arteta is due to provide a fresh update on him and several others later today following his hopeful admission before the domestic pause.
What Arteta has said: “Some of them, all of them, [could be available after the break], I don’t know. There are a lot of things that have to happen in the next two weeks, and everything has to be perfect, but I think we’ll be very close.”
What Odegaard has said: “It’s moving forward. The match today came a little too early… But it’s starting to look better, so hopefully I’ll be back soon.”
Potential return date: Tottenham (H) – Sunday, November 23
Noni Madueke
With reports emerging prior to the two-week domestic pause that Madueke was in line to feature against Sunderland, the expectation is that he will be back in the squad to face Tottenham which will come as a big boost after two months out.,
The winger playing for Arsenal under-21s was under consideration, but it was decided he would continue his recovery on the training pitch.
It seems unlikely that Arteta will confirm his availability in his pre-match press conference this afternoon.
What Arteta has said: “Some of them, all of them, [could be available after the break], I don’t know. There are a lot of things that have to happen in the next two weeks, and everything has to be perfect, but I think we’ll be very close.”
Gabriel Magalhaes
After limping off for Brazil, there are fears that Gabriel be unavailable until January, but there is hope he will only miss the next few weeks.
What Italy boss Gennaro Gatusso said: “We tried Calafiori, he had a few issues. I thank him for his commitment. He stayed here for a week; he could have played perhaps, but it wouldn’t have been fair to him or Arsenal.”
Potential return date: Tottenham (H) – Sunday, November 23
Gabriel Jesus
Jesus is gradually edging closer to playing for the first time since January with the Brazilian in team training for the last few weeks.
What Arteta has said: “It’s about making the steps day-by-day in a different surrounding. He’s been doing everything on his own; now he’s got very competitive players around him, and let’s see how he copes with that. But he’s full of energy.