Mikel Arteta admits that both Kieran Tierney and Martin Odegaard tried to prove their fitness in Arsenal training yesterday, but were not able to.
Failing the test
Speaking to Football London after Arsenal’s win over Leeds United in the League Cup last night, Arteta was asked why both Odegaard and Tierney had been left out.
And the Gunners boss revealed that the pair had been suffering with injuries.
Arsenal felt that both had a chance of featuring yesterday evening, but after a training session it was clear that they weren’t fit enough to feature against Leeds.
And now Arteta is hoping that they will both be back to full fitness by the weekend.
He said: “They were both out with two different injuries. They tried yesterday but they didn’t feel great. They wanted to be involved but they weren’t good enough on the day. Hopefully they can be better and be available against Leicester.”
Good signs
If Odegaard and Tierney did train then it looks a promising omen for Arsenal that the pair won’t be out for too much longer.
Their places in Arsenal’s team right now are hardly a guarantee though.
Nuno Tavares caught the eye in Tierney’s absence last weekend, as Arsenal beat Aston Villa.
Odegaard, meanwhile, faces a real fight for his spot, with Emile Smith Rowe in such fine form currently.
If Arsenal can beat Leicester City at the weekend then they will leap the Foxes and could realistically move up as high as fifth in the Premier League standings.
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