Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard are battling an illness that has reached the dressing room.
Havertz missed the New Year’s Day win over Brentford and, despite some initial optimism, was again left out of the squad for Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Brighton & Hove Albionfor which the club captain Odegaard also went down to the bench.
With the visit of in-form Newcastle United coming up on Tuesday for the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, Arteta admitted that both Havertz and Odegaard are struggling with their fitness.
“Kai tried, but he was really honest and said: ‘I can’t even train, I don’t feel good at all,'” Arteta revealed after the game. “We tried to see if he could train and he tried his best but he wasn’t able to do it.
“Martin didn’t train and he said, ‘I’ll see how I feel (Saturday) and he did his best to be here because we know the numbers we have.’
of Arsenal injury The crisis deepened during the match when Ethan Nwaneri, who has impressed in place of the unavailable Bukayo Saka, was withdrawn at half-time.
“It’s very bad news because I think we’ve lost him,” Arteta said of the teenager. “We had to take him off at halftime with some muscle issues.”
