“I’m feeling more positive every day” : Martin Odegaard provides an update on his injury
Arsenal skipper Martin Odegaard suffered an ankle injury during the UEFA Nations League tournament held during the recent international break. In Norway’s 2-1 win over Austria, the 25-year-old was subbed off sooner than expected due to this. The injury did not look too serious at first, but Norway coach Solbakken revealed that the Norwegian’s condition looked ‘bad’ in the dressing room, as suggested by doctor Ola Sand.
The next day, Odegaard was seen in crutches travelling back to London to assess his situation further. The Norwegian has missed plenty of important games throughout the course of this injury, including the fierce North London derby against Spurs and the table top battle against Manchester City.
But most recently, via Arsenal’s captain’s notes which are published before every matchday programme, the Gunners’ midfield maestro broke out the silence regarding his injury, while also reflecting on his own views and thoughts of when it occurred and how he finds a way to be involved with his mates in the squad even during injury.
“I’m working hard and doing everything I can do to get better” : Martin Odegaard
Ahead of the Gunners’ third round EFL Cup tie against League One side Bolton, the Norwegian gave fans an update regarding his unfortunate injury, his talks with the medical team and the importance of the upcoming match for youngsters in the squad.
“It was a bad twist to my ankle, and I damaged some ligaments there, but it’s part of football and now I’m just trying to recover as quickly as I can. I’m moving forward, making progress and I’m feeling more positive every day. I’m working hard and my only thought is to get back as soon as possible,” said Odegaard (via Arsenal.com).
“I’m at the Sobha Realty Training Centre basically every day now, working hard and doing everything I can do to get better. I have to be careful not to push it too much, but at the same time do what I can to make sure I come back as strongly and quickly as possible. I’m trying to support the team in a different way now, if I can’t be on the pitch. That’s my situation, and I have to make the best out of it,” the Arsenal captain added.
The Norwegian also explained that he was lucky enough to avoid major injuries in the past, and although the ankle pain felt ‘different’ this time around, he is simply glad not to have ruptured anything serious.
“It’s something I’m not used to. I’ve been quite fortunate, if that’s the word, or have done well to avoid injuries in the past, but this is football and I have to get on with it. I think it was unfortunate to get the injury in the way that I did, but also it could have been worse. It was not a nice twist, and when it happened I felt it could be serious. I’ve injured my ankle before and the pain felt a bit different this time. That’s what scared me, but from what happened it could have been worse, so in that sense I got away with it a bit,” said Odegaard.
Like any player, the first thing I asked the medical team was how long I would be out for, but it’s a bit tricky to say at the moment. In the early stages, it’s crucial to get a proper rest and to make sure everything heals well. After that it’s about getting stronger and building it up again,” the Norwegian added.
Like a true captain would, Martin Odegaard also took this opportunity to wish the Gunners best of luck for their match against Bolton, and reflected on how much of an important opportunity this is for young players to showcase their talents and rack up minutes under their belt. Funnily enough, the Norwegian himself is only 25 years old.
“I’m looking forward to cheering on the boys against Bolton tonight. It might be a chance for some of the players who need minutes and some of the young players. The main thing is though that it’s another competition to play, another trophy to aim for, and we want to win it. We go into every game wanting to win and it’s a good chance for the squad to show that we are strong enough and ready to fight in every competition,” said Odegaard, who himself debuted for the national team at age 15.
Though an official return date is not revealed yet, the Gunners captain’s small yet significant ankle injury will rule him out for a few more weeks. Head coach Mikel Arteta was pressed on whether or not the Norwegian would return before the next international break, to which he admitted would be a ‘surprise’. Going by the average length of a sprained ankle injury and the already accumulated recovery time, we could see Martin Odegaard return to action between late October to early November.
