Martin Odegaard says it was his decision to pull out of Norway’s international fixtures this week and confirmed he expects to be fit for Arsenal’s next Premier League game against Nottingham Forest.
Odegaard returned to action as a late substitute in the Champions League defeat to Inter Milan last week, after two months out with an ankle injury picked up on international duty in September.
The Gunners captain then started Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea, assisting Gabriel Martinelli’s opening goal and, somewhat surprisingly, playing the full 90 minutes.
“I got through the match at the weekend, but it was a rather abrupt transition from the last nine weeks,” he said. “In this kind of process, you don’t just go from being injured to suddenly being completely healthy.”
You don’t just go from being injured to suddenly being completely healthy
Odegaard had initially been left out of the Norway squad for their Nations League games against Slovenia and Kazakhstan in what is the final international break of the year.
However, after featuring against the Blues he travelled to Oslo to link up with Ståle Solbakken’s squad, only to then return to London after the decision was made that he was best served continuing his rehabilitation at his club.
“You tend to have a reaction to what happens, and then it’s about how you react to it,” Odegaard explained on Norway’s TV2 channel. “Together with the NFF’s medical team, we’ve looked at it and agreed that it’s better for me to go back and make a full recovery.
“We have had an open and nice discussion. I have been talking to Ståle ever since I was injured, and of course more intensively in recent weeks. This is not about what Arsenal has said, or what Ståle has said. It’s about what my situation is.
“Yes [it’s my choice], but in consultation with the medical team here [in Norway]. This is something we agree on, but ultimately it is me who has made the choice based on what I know the body needs.”
The Gunners badly missed Odegaard’s creativity during his absence and manager Mikel Arteta hailed his immediate impact on return at Chelsea as “unbelievable”.
Trailing league leaders Liverpool by nine points, Arsenal know they must go on a strong run when the domestic campaign resumes at home to Forest the weekend after next.
“Of course I hope so,” said Odegaard, when asked if he will be fit for that game. “I’m going back now and will have a further follow-up, and then we’ll see until next week when it picks up again.”
