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Arsenal dealt Martin Odegaard fear as star man immediately leaves opening pre-season clash
Arsenal have been dealt an early pre-season blow due to a possible Martin Odegaard injury.
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The North Londoners confirmed the news in a tweet, with Fabio Vieira drafted in to replace the club captain. It is unclear what Odegaard's problem is at this stage.
Odegaard had been prime to feature heavily for Arsenal during pre-season. The 24-year-old was coming off the back of an outstanding season with the Premier League side.
However, the Norwegian has suffered a setback in his preparations for the 2023-24 campaign. His pre-season had barely begun before suffering his latest injury.
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Fabio Vieira replaces Martin Odegaard in today's starting XI due to a knock in the warm-up. https://t.co/FskRHneund
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) July 13, 2023
Odegaard seemed to pull up during Arsenal's warm-up and did not feature in the subsequent friendly with Nurnberg. Vieira took his place in the starting line-up.
Arteta and Arsenal's fans will hope that Odegaard's injury. Given the context that this is pre-season, it is likely that he was taken out of the fold as a precaution.
The former Real Madrid man will hope to play a key part in another title challenge for Arsenal this season. His form was pivotal to the Gunners' shock bid to win the Premier League last term, with his side ultimately beaten to the summit by Manchester City in the final months of the campaign.
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Odegaard has admitted that he has tried not to think about Arsenal coming so close to winning the top-flight for the first time in 19 years. He said while on international duty: “I’ve tried not to see so much of that stuff there, because it still stings," Odegaard said. "I try not to think too much about it. Even though we delivered a very good season for a long time, I am left with a sour feeling."
Meanwhile, Arsenal are reportedly close to completing the signings of Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber. A club-record £105million deal will see England ace Rice join from West Ham to bolster the Gunners’ midfield, where he will play alongside Odegaard.
Timber is widely expected to join from Ajax in a £40m switch. Arsenal have also allowed Granit Xhaka to join Bayer Leverkusen for £21.5m, freeing up space on the wage bill for Arteta to make further big-money additions.