Arsenal will host Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday for the second leg of their Champions League round-of-16 clash, having drawn 1-1 with the Bundesliga club last week
Jurrien Timber and Martin Odegaard are both sidelined(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Mikel Arteta has confirmed that both Martin Odegaard and Jurrien Timber will miss Arsenal’s crunch Champions League clash with Bayer Leverkusen. In a boost, however, Leandro Trossard has returned to training and is set to be involved in the round-of-16 clash.
Defender Timber came off injured in the first half of Arsenal’s dramatic 2-0 win at home to Everton on Saturday. Captain Odegaard, meanwhile, has missed the Gunners’ last five games with a knee injury.
The duo missed training ahead of Tuesday’s second leg and both won’t feature as the Gunners look to build on their 1-1 draw in Germany last week, courtesy of a late Kai Havertz penalty.
“Yes, both of them are out,” Arteta told a pre-match press conference. On Trossard, who took part in Monday’s training session, the Arsenal manager added: “He’s okay, he felt good.”
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Odegaard and Timber face a race against time to be fit for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City. Arteta says that Odegaard is ‘really pushing’ while Timber’s injury is a ‘matter of days’.
There was also good news on Ben White, who was notably left on the bench despite Timber’s injury. Cristhian Mosquera was insteas subbed on at right-back, with White seemingly not fully fit on Saturday.
“He’s in a much better place now,” Arteta said. “He’s been very unlucky. He trained today, he feels good.”
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Although Sunday’s final is looming, Arsenal’s priority will be progression in the Champions League. The Gunners were below par in the first leg, with Leverkusen opening the scoring early in the second half.
A controversial penalty gave Havertz the chance to level the scores against his former club, cooly dispatched his spot-kick. Havertz started the game against Everton but was replaced after an hour by Viktor Gyokeres, whose 89th-minute goal put Arsenal in front at the Emirates.
The Gunners rounded off their win with a goal from Max Dowman, who at 16 announced himself to the Premier League. Arteta is keen to look after Dowman, stressing the importance of keeping his feet on the ground.
“I think we have the leadership group, obviously,” the Gunners boss explained. “The most important one is his family. He takes it very normally.”
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