Arsenal are back in action after the November International break, and they will hope their players are rested and recharged.
Several members of the first-team squad did not feature for their countries during the break as some struggled for fitness after a gruelling month in which Arsenal did not win any of their Premier League fixtures.
Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka did not join the England squad after being substituted against Chelsea, a game in which Martin Odegaard made his first start since August.
Despite returning to action at Stamford Bridge, Odegaard did not join the Norway squad over the break, and he has now explained why he made this decision.
Martin Odegaard explains why he remained at Arsenal during International break
In his captain’s programme notes ahead of Arsenal’s clash with Nottingham Forest, Odegaard explained why he returned to North London after initially travelling for Norway’s Nations League matches.
“Because I hadn’t been training as normal before the Chelsea game, I didn’t feel like I was ready to go away with Norway in the international break and play again so soon,” he revealed.
“I needed some time to work on my fitness and to make sure the ankle was OK. Also other parts of the body need work when you have been out for a long time – when you play your first game in eight weeks it can be brutal on the body.
“So we all decided it was the best decision not to play the Norway games, and I thought it was what my body needed too. So I went there for a few days, then travelled back to London to continue my rehab at Sobha. I want to get back to 100 per cent now, so that’s what I’ve been working on.”
Is Mikel Arteta happy with Martin Odegaard’s International break decision?
Odegaard picked up his long-term injury whilst playing for Norway in September, and keeping him at Arsenal meant that the midfielder would avoid the risk of further injury.
Mikel Arteta will have been delighted in this sense, but he may have also been keen to see Odegaard play and build up his fitness after such a long period out of action.
“He played really well [against Chelsea] and that had consequences because after such a long time not playing he needed time to recover,” Arteta stated in his press conference.
“The ankle reacted and other areas of the body with so much load going into it. It wasn’t ideal, but he’s been OK, the last day and a half he’s trained with the team and he’s feeling good, so that’s really positive.”
Arsenal will now hope that Odegaard’s return can help give them the creative spark they have sorely lacked in his absence, and there is now pressure on the captain to help his team turn their form around.
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