Martin Odegaard admits it’s difficult to put a firm date on his return from a knee injury, insisting it’ll depend on how his body reacts once he’s back out on the grass.
The Norway international has had a frustrating start to the season, twice injuring his shoulder before a clash of knees in Arsenal’s 2–0 win over West Ham earlier this month did for him again. That unfortunate moment made him the first player in Premier League history to be substituted before half-time in three consecutive matches – one of those records nobody wants.
The club later confirmed he’d suffered a medial collateral ligament injury to his left knee. He was promptly withdrawn from international duty and isn’t expected back until after the November Interlull.
Writing in his programme notes ahead of tonight’s Champions League meeting with Atletico Madrid, Odegaard offered an update on his recovery – and it sounds like he’s using his enforced downtime as productively as possible.
“I had to watch the Fulham game from home as I’m recovering from my knee injury of course, but the rehab is going well,” [he said.](https://www.arsenal.com/news/odegaards-update-his-injury-rehab-and-return)
“I had a few days off after the West Ham game, because I couldn’t do much work and had to rest my knee anyway, so I went to Norway.
“But I’ve been back for a week now and working every day to keep my fitness up as well as trying to heal the injury, so it’s busy days at the moment.
“It’s hard work and long days in recovery, but that’s what you want and I feel like it’s going well so far. I feel like I’ve been really unlucky a few times this season. It was a knee-to-knee contact in the West Ham game, and at the time I didn’t know if it was bad or not because they can be quite painful, but normally you can run it off.
“So that’s why I tried to keep going, to see if it was getting better. I was hoping it was just a knock that would improve in a couple of minutes. But it didn’t get better and I felt like something was wrong, so in the end it was better to come off.
“As soon as we got inside, the medical team had a proper look at it. When the adrenaline stopped flowing and it settled down a bit, then it was quite sore.”
On when supporters might expect to see him back in action, he continued:
“It’s tricky to set a return date with this type of injury because, especially it being my left leg, a lot depends on how it goes when I start getting back on the pitch.
“Sometimes it can be quite sore when you start passing the ball and shooting and all these things with that leg, so it’s really hard to say a date. All I can say is I’m progressing really well at the moment. I think we will know more when I start getting back on the training pitches and we’ll see how that goes. If that goes really well then it can be quick.
“In the meantime, I’m going to try to contribute however I can off the pitch. I’ve had some experiences now not being available, last year with my ankle injury and this year with the shoulder as well. I’m there at Sobha every day around the team. I’m in the meetings, I’m at the games so I’m definitely around and helping in a different way. I’m just trying to see if the team needs anything or if I see something when I’m watching.”
For now, Arsenal seem to be managing Odegaard’s absence well enough. They sit three points clear at the top of the Premier Leafye table and will look to maintain their momentum in the Champions League against Atletico.
With Eberechi Eze and Ethan Nwaneri offering creativity in the No.10 role, and Mikel Merino or Declan Rice capable of pushing higher when needed, Arteta’s side look far better equipped to handle the loss of their captain than they were a year ago. Back then, his absence felt like a major disruption; this time, the team looks settled, organised, and confident in its rhythm.