‘Never a good sign’ – What Arteta said about Odegaard and Saka injuries ahead of Liverpool clash | OneFootball

Mikel Arteta saw his Arsenal side thump Leeds 5-0 on Saturday, but it wasn’t the perfect evening for the Gunners boss.

The home faithful at the Emirates Stadium toasted the newly-announced signing of Eberechi Eze prior to kick-off and then watched their team dismantle Daniel Farke’s side to maintain their 100% start to the season.

However, two key players in Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka went off injured yesterday, not what the north Londoners would’ve wanted to see the week before they face Liverpool at Anfield.

Arteta gives injury updates on Odegaard and Saka

Arteta issued tentative updates on the stricken duo after the match, with both players set to undergo scans today to assess the severity of their respective body blows.

The Spaniard said (via arsenal.com): “That’s the negatives of the day. Martin felt something in his shoulder when he landed. We don’t know, we’ll have to scan him tomorrow and understand a bit better.

“Bukayo, while he was carrying the ball, wrestling with the defender, he felt something in his hamstring. Let’s see, I think it’s the other one, it’s not the same one as the previous injury.

“We’ve been two weeks and we’ve already lost Kai [Havertz], Martin and Bukayo, so it tells you how well-equipped you have to be in this league to manage and to maintain the level that we want.”

(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Speaking about Saka specifically, Arteta continued: “He felt something while he was sprinting. That’s never a good sign. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow, speak to the doctors and understand better what he’s done. He’s had his injuries before, he knows exactly the feeling of that, so let’s wait.”

Arteta could be without three key players for Liverpool clash

Although the Arsenal manager didn’t give a timeframe on how long either player is likely to be sidelined, an independent injury analyst has issued an estimated layoff period for the duo.

According to @physioscout on X, Odegaard’s shoulder problem would only see him miss ‘a week or two’ if it’s a low-grade joint sprain, but could rule him out for two to four weeks if it’s a Grade 2/3 sprain.

Saka’s hamstring injury is more severe, with 2-4 weeks given as the best-case scenario and 8-12 weeks listed as the estimated timeframe for a Grade 3 issue, if that’s how it’s diagnosed.

What it means for Arteta is that the England international will definitely miss the game against Liverpool, with Havertz also sidelined due to a knee problem, and Odegaard is doubtful too.

The Reds have injury issues of their own with which to contend, with Jeremie Frimpong a confirmed absentee for the next two matches and Conor Bradley only back in training in recent days, which could see Dominik Szoboszlai deployed at right-back if Joe Gomez isn’t deemed fit enough to start.

We always want to see the best players featuring in the biggest games, and even though Arsenal would find it significantly tougher against LFC without the likes of Saka, Havertz and Odegaard, we wouldn’t like to see the trio sidelined for a prolonged period of time.

The Gunners will definitely be weaker without them, but they’ll still represent one of Liverpool’s biggest challenges of the season at Anfield next Sunday.