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Will Odegaard, Trossard and Calafiori play for Arsenal against Bayer Leverkusen? Mikel Arteta gives update
Martin Odegaard is unavailable for Arsenal in their Champions League round of 16 first-leg match at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, but the rest of the team's key players should be ready for selection.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta provided an injury update on the eve of the team's first knockout stage match of the current competition, stating plainly that Odegaard will not play in this week's contest at the BayArena.
"He’s out," Arteta said of Arsenal's captain when asked at a pre-game press conference if Odegaard is available for selection. Odegaard has struggled with injuries this season, missing 18 total games so far with various ailments. The 27-year-old is currently out with a knee injury, missing the Gunners' last three matches.
While Arsenal fans will not be happy to hear that Odegaard is still not fit to play, they should be pleased with the rest of the team news delivered by Arteta on Tuesday. The Gunners' boss stated that all of Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Gabriel and William Saliba — who were not in the lineup for Arsenal's fifth-round FA Cup victory over Mansfield Town over the weekend — are set to return to the lineup, while Riccardo Calafiori and Leandro Trossard are also possibilities after starting in the team's most recent win.
"Those two (Calafiore and Trossard) are a possibility that they are available, and we'll see tomorrow how we use them," Arteta said.
Meanwhile Kai Havertz, who started his professional career with Leverkusen before moving to the Premier League in 2020, is set to return to the stadium he called home for 150 matches. The German has been a key part of Arteta's side since joining Arsenal in 2023, but he missed nearly 30 games this season with a knee injury and sat out of four matches in February with hamstring issues.
Havertz is healthy now and should play a part in Wednesday's match at the BayArena, but Arteta says the 26-year-old still needs to be eased back into action.
"It's been something new for him," Arteta said. "When you look at his injury record, it’s just blank. He never had a muscle injury and last year he had his hamstring injury that required surgery and then the knee injury, so it's been a tough period.
"But as well a lot of great things happened in his private life as well. When you talk about a 15-20 year career, you're going to have to go unfortunately, most likely, through these moments. If there is a person that has the right combination of humbleness, patience and love for the game and a competitive edge, that's certain Kai.
"He had difficult moments but that's why we are here and all his teammates and family are there. Now he needs to really enjoy all the work that he's put in to see the results at the end of the season."
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