That would rule him out of seven matches: Premier League games against Fulham, Crystal Palace, Burnley and Sunderland, Champions League games against

Arsenal games Martin Odegaard will miss as Mikel Arteta ‘learns extent’ of knee injury

Arsenal have reportedly learned how long Martin Odegaard will be sidelined with a knee injury for after the captain’s record-breaking substitution.

The Norway international became the first player in Premier League history to be taken off in the first half of three consecutive starts when he succumbed to the issue in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over West Ham United two Saturdays ago.

Odegaard came off worse in a clash of knees with Crysencio Summerville and tried to play through the pain initially, but he ultimately had to come off for Martin Zubimendi as his early-season misfortune continued.

The 26-year-old had previously suffered freak shoulder injuries against Leeds United and Nottingham Forest, although he recovered from those concerns relatively quickly.

However, Arsenal confirmed earlier this month that Odegaard had pulled out of the Norway squad after sustaining an MCL problem, but they did not state how long their skipper could be out for.

Martin Odegaard set to miss seven Arsenal games with knee injury

Now, BBC Sport claims that Odegaard will be absent until after the November international break with his knee injury, meaning that he is set to sit out at least nine matches for club and country.

The 26-year-old will firstly miss the Gunners’ London derby with Fulham on October 18 following the international period, as well as the visit of Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in two Tuesdays’ time.

Mikel Arteta’s men will also face Crystal Palace and Brighton & Hove Albion – the latter in the EFL Cup – towards the end of October, before opening November with a trip to newly-promoted Burnley.

The Gunners then take on Slavia Prague (November 4) and Sunderland (November 8) before the next international break, during which Norway will be without Odegaard for their final World Cup 2026 qualifiers against Estonia and Italy.

However, Stale Solbakken’s men need just one point from their final two games to assure themselves of a place in the tournament, having won each of their first six contests in Group I to sit six points clear of Italy.

Assuming Odegaard’s recovery goes to plan, Arsenal should have the Scandinavian back for the North London derby on November 23, as well as a clash of the titans with Bayern Munich in the Champions League three days later.

How can Arsenal, Mikel Arteta replace injured Martin Odegaard?

Odegaard’s sublime display against Olympiacos in the Champions League earlier this month showed that when the Norwegian is on his game, he is arguably irreplaceable in this Arsenal team, but Arteta does have a number of competent backup options.

The Spaniard trusted Mikel Merino in the Odegaard role when his skipper was recovering from his pair of shoulder problems, but the former Real Sociedad midfielder lacks his teammate’s natural creativity and struggled to impact games in that slot.

Instead, this could now be Eberechi Eze’s time to shine after the England international showed glimpses of what he is capable of in a central role against Newcastle United, but Ethan Nwaneri will have a thing or two to say about that.

The 18-year-old recently sent Arteta quite the selection message with a pair of assists for England’s Under-21s, and as Arsenal are intent on using him in a central role, his long-awaited starts will surely come sooner rather than later.