Mikel Arteta issues positive injury update on Martin Odegaard, Ben White
Neither man was able to contribute to their 3-1 win over Burnley before the international break, as Odegaard sat out a third game in succession due to concussion protocol.
The Arsenal captain was initially believed to have been taking time off due to a hip problem, which saw him remain on the bench for the Gunners' 5-0 thrashing of Sheffield United in October.
Odegaard made a brief return to score in a 3-1 EFL Cup fourth-round loss to West Ham United as a substitute, but Arsenal subsequently faced Sevilla, Newcastle and Burnley without the services of their skipper.
However, it then emerged that Odegaard's recent absences were down to a freak training ground accident rather than his previous hip injury, as he was placed in concussion protocol after taking a ball to the face in practice.
The 24-year-old did not join up with the Norway squad for November's international as he continued his recovery in North London, but speaking to the media in Friday's pre-game press conference, Arteta was able to share a positive update.
«Hopefully, yes. We have another training session today but he's been progressing well and hopefully he will be available,» Arteta responded when asked if Odegaard was on track to be fit.
«We didn't know how many days [he'd be out for]. It depends on certain things and at the end he got more delayed than we wanted. But we have to protect the player.»
Meanwhile, White was a surprise omission from the team sheet for the visit of Burnley two weekends ago, and Arteta revealed that the Englishman had sustained a few niggles after his
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