Darren Bent has revealed that he wasn’t ‘panicking’ after news emerged that Martin Odegaard will miss six weeks of football for Arsenal.
Odegaard has been ruled out until after the November international break after sustaining an MCL injury against West Ham last time out.
The Norwegian will miss key fixtures against Fulham, Atletico Madrid and Crystal Palace, and Mikel Arteta will have to search for inventive solutions to his captain’s absence.
While Eberechi Eze is expected to fill the creative void left by Odegaard, Bent has put forward another potential candidate.
Darren Bent says Gabriel Jesus is still a genuine option for Arsenal
Odegaard has endured a frustrating start to the new season.
The 26-year-old has been forced off in three of Arsenal’s games with injuries, twice due to shoulder problems sustained in collisions and once due to his knee.
In previous seasons, this absence would have set off panic stations amongst Gunners supporters. Now, however, Arsenal fans aren’t overly concerned by Odegaard’s injury.
Former Tottenham striker Darren Bent echoes these sentiments, claiming that he’s not ‘panicking’ after hearing the injury update.
The pundit believes Arsenal have sufficient options to cover for the playmaker’s lack of availability, citing Gabriel Jesus as one of these potential replacements.
“We’re now hearing that Odegaard’s out for a little bit of time,” Bent said on talkSPORT.
“He’s got an MCL injury and I’m not panicking. There was a time where I would have panicked, but now I’m not because I’m thinking well, you’ve got Eze who can step in there.
“The emergence of [Ethan] Nwaneri, I know [Noni] Madueke is out, but he could come back in. Even, you know, you forget about even Gabriel Jesus, like I’m not he’s the answer, he’s been injured, but he’s just another body.”
Gabriel Jesus could be sold in January
Gabriel Jesus is recovering from his own serious injury, an ACL problem he sustained in January in an FA Cup tie against Manchester United.
The Brazilian isn’t expected to return to action until late November at the very earliest, and thus, Bent’s optimism that the striker could cover for Odegaard is probably not realistic.
In fact, even if the former Manchester City man does make a return to Arteta’s fold in the winter, it’s possible that it’s very short-lived.
Arsenal are said to be ‘open to offers’ for Jesus, who could return to his home nation in the January transfer window.
Given he’ll turn 29 in April, the chances of him rediscovering his best form after such a significant set-back are somewhat unlikely.
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