Arsenal injuries and possible return dates heading into international break amid Odegaard and Rice setbacks

Arsenal now head into the international break, and in the best possible way after leapfrogging Liverpool to go top over the weekend. The Gunners defeated West Ham to take advantage of Liverpool’s late defeat at Chelsea, and Mikel Arteta’s men have already overcome a five-point deficit at this still early stage.

The Gunners will want to press home their advantage when they return to action, but first comes the international break, and Arteta won’t mind the timing of this one after losing two players to injury during the West Ham win. Both Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard, who are vital to this Arsenal side, picked up issues and will need to be assessed. Here we round up the Arsenal injury latest.

Piero Hincapie

The defender has a groin injury that will keep him out. Arteta said recently: “He picked up a little groin injury. We'll have to assess him again in the next few days to see how he goes. There's been a change of load, and he didn't really have a pre-season after the surgery that he had. We'll have to see in the next week or so how he is.”

Possible return - Mid-October

Noni Madueke

Arteta confirmed recently: “It looks he's going to be out for a few weeks. We don't know [how long] yet. We're probably going to have to scan him next week again. He felt something at the beginning of the match, he tried to carry on, and at half-time, he was too sore, so let’s see.”

Possible return - Late November

Kai Havertz

Havertz won’t be returning any time soon, with Arteta saying in his last update: “With Kai, we know that it will be months with him. I don't know if it can be weeks; you never know... We really miss him. Hopefully, he will be back, and back for the long term as well, so it is very important to look after that knee. So far, he's progressing pretty well.”

Possible return - Late November

Gabriel Jesus

Jesus remains out and will likely remain out until the new year. Arteta said recently: “He had a major surgery - it was going to take him many, many months. After discussing with the medical staff and understanding the schedule, we thought that he could be available between December and January. Hopefully, we did it wrong, and he comes back earlier.”

Possible return - January

Martin Odegaard

Odegaard suffered an injury during the win over West Ham, with Arteta explaining afterwards: “With Martin, I think it was a clash of knees, and he's not looking very positive at the moment.” It’s unclear how long Odegaard will be out for at this stage, but he is unlikely to go on international duty.

Possible return - After the international break/unknown.

Declan Rice

Rice is another player who picked up an issue in the West Ham win. Arteta explained afterwards: “I think he was struggling with back pain or something, and he asked to come off.” Rice should be back after the break, but it’s unclear.

Possible return - After the international break/unknown.

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