Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided a positive injury update on Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz ahead of the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners played out a 1-1 draw against Atletico on the road last week. They followed it up with a resounding 3-0 Premier League win over Fulham at home, and should go into tonight’s game with plenty of confidence.
Ahead of the clash, Arteta has confirmed that Odegaard and Havertz are back in the squad, having recovered from knee and leg injuries respectively, he told reporters: “Yes, they are available.
“They are in the squad, both of them. We need options, we need the capacity to play different games tomorrow, whether it’s from the start or after. So it’s really, really good news for us to have them both back.”
Arsenal have reached the Champions League final on just one occasion in 2006, when they were beaten by Barcelona 2-1. The Gunners played most of the game with 10 men after Jens Lehmann’s early sending off.
They have the chance to reach the summit once more and should fancy their chances, having beaten Atletico 4-0 during the league phase of the competition at the Emirates earlier this term.
The Gunners did not have favourable conditions at the Wanda Metropolitano, with Atletico leaving more grass and water on the pitch, which made it difficult for the players to control proceedings.
Arsenal should have an ideal pitch for their playing style tonight. The onus is on the Gunners to make a quick start with a goal in order to put themselves in the ascendancy in the contest.
Despite Havertz’s return to training, Viktor Gyokeres looks poised to continue upfront on the back of scoring a brace against Fulham. The Swede also bagged a brace in the 4-0 win over Atletico and scored from the penalty spot last week.
Martin Odegaard, however, could be reinstated back into the starting XI. We could see him and Eberechi Eze operate together with the latter starting from the left side of the Gunners’ attack.
