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ARSENAL STARS SET FOR RETURN — ODEGAARD, HAVERTZ INJURY TIMELINES OUT

Injury expert Ben Dinnery advises Mikel Arteta not to rush Martin Odegaard & Kai Havertz back. Arsenal can manage their returns carefully with squad depth, targeting a post-international break comeback.

Arsenal Stars Set For Return — Odegaard, Havertz Injury Timelines Out
Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard - (Michael Regan - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)

Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz will not be rushed back into the starting lineup as Arsenal looks to fully recover from their injury problems, Mikel Arteta has been told.

Ben Dinnery, an injury expert, offered advice on how Arteta could go about getting his two injured Gunners players back into the fold in an exclusive interview with football.london.

Since coming on as a substitute in Arsenal's 1-0 victory over Manchester United on the first day of the season, Havertz has not played for the team. The German international, who had just returned after a protracted absence due to a hamstring strain last season, underwent knee surgery to treat his discomfort.

Odegaard has not been out as long as his teammate from Arsenal, but he has now sustained two injuries: one to his knee and one to his shoulder.

According to Escapist Magazine, Dinnery responded, "I suppose you look at the two individually," when asked when we may see either player return to action. Compared to Havertz, Odegaard has undoubtedly missed more time due to injury.

"After undergoing that hamstring surgery, Havertz is returning and, to be honest, had a very interrupted 2025. coming back and then experiencing that most recent knee injury.

"I believe he is a player who might require a little more cautious handling. Odegaard's own shoulder injury was a chronic or recurrent issue that restricted his playing time in that competitive setting.

However, he was able to make some progress toward increasing his level of fitness, even if this most recent setback is likely to last anywhere from six to possibly eight weeks.

"I would definitely anticipate that he would be incorporated a little bit sooner than Havertz. However, as always, there is a catch to that. The scheduling of team games, injuries, and suspensions could always be influencing factors.

"Perfectly, considering Arsenal's current situation and their possibilities, especially in that offensive third with Eze, Martinelli, Trossard, and others.

"There are many possibilities available, and as long as things are going well on the field, Mikel Arteta will not have to worry about when these players will return.

"That is because he can afford to manage these players a bit better and, ideally, return to the first team with a more integrated and stable approach."

After the November international break, Havertz and Odegaard are anticipated to return to first-team play in anticipation of a pivotal stretch of games that might determine Arsenal's season.

The Gunners' first domestic match will be against bitter rivals Spurs in the north London derby. They will next play Bayern Munich in the Champions League, then go across London to Stamford Bridge to play Chelsea, another title contender.

PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS: ARSENAL'S WORST GAME SAVED BY DOUBLE STOPPAGE-TIME OWN-GOALS

Mikel Arteta admitted relief after Arsenal snatched a crucial 2-1 win over resilient Wolves via two late own goals, despite delivering their "worst game this season."

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Substitutions Fail to Fire Until Two Late Own-Goals

Mikel Arteta can breathe a sigh of relief after Saturday. Arsenal barely squeaked by with a win against Wolves thanks to a late goal.

Arsenal's play was slow, and they struggled to get past Wolves' solid defense, which stayed back and held strong. Arteta seemed lost as he looked to the bench for solutions as the evening wore on.

It was probably Arsenal's worst game this season. They seemed unprepared. The team lacked speed, and Wolves easily cleared the ball.

Arteta didn't seem to fix anything. There were no changes after halftime, and the game remained slow. He needed to do something, but his subs only seemed to slow things down more.

Wolves haven't been great this season, but on Saturday, they played like a team, working together to stop Arsenal.

Arsenal tried their usual tactic: a corner. Bukayo Saka sent the ball into the box, and it went in unconventionally.

Saka's cross went over everyone, hit the inside of the post, bounced off Sam Johnstone's back, and went over the line.

It looked like Arsenal would pull out an ugly win, one that would keep them ahead of Manchester City and Aston Villa.

But Wolves had other plans. They played better as Arsenal fell back. After a great pass into the box, Wolves tied the game, stunning the Emirates Stadium.

Still, Arsenal didn't give up. Saka sent in another ball, which hit Yerson Mosquera and went into his own net.

It was a tough loss for Wolves but a huge relief for Arsenal, who now have a five-point lead at the top of the league again.

ANALYSIS: ARSENAL ESCAPES WOLVES SCARE VIA TWO OWN-GOALS, WHITE INJURED

Arsenal's title bid gets a massive boost! They defeated Wolves 2-1 with two fortunate own-goals, moving five points clear at the top of the table.

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Own Goals Hand Arsenal Crucial Stoppage-Time Victory

Arsenal grabbed a 2-1 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers, thanks to two own goals (the winning goal in stoppage time). This win gives them a five-point lead in the Premier League.

After winning just one of their last three games, Arsenal risked dropping more points when Tolu Arokodare leveled the score for Wolves in the 90th minute. That goal canceled out an earlier own goal in the 70th minute, caused by Wolves' keeper Sam Johnstone.

But Arsenal caught a break. In the fourth minute of added time, Yerson Mosquera, pressured by Gabriel Jesus, headed Saka's cross into his own net, leaving Johnstone stunned.

Manchester City will try to cut Arsenal's lead to two points when they play Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Wolves remain at the bottom of the league, with only two points from 16 games after their ninth straight loss. They're close to matching Sheffield United's record of 17 winless games from the start of a Premier League season.

William Saliba returned for Arsenal after missing four games with an ankle injury. But Arsenal's defense still has problems, as Ben White suffered a hamstring injury.

With Gabriel, Cristhian Mosquera, and Riccardo Calafiori already out, White, who played for only 30 minutes, might be sidelined for a while.

Arsenal aimed to bounce back after losing 2-1 to Aston Villa last weekend. But they had trouble in the first half.

Wolves had the best chance to score in a dull first 45 minutes. Hwang Hee-Chan had space in the box. But his shot was easily saved by David Raya.

Arsenal had a few opportunities, but Johnstone didn't have to make any difficult saves. The fans weren't happy as the halftime whistle blew.

Surprisingly, Arteta didn't make any offensive changes at halftime. But around the 60-minute mark, he brought on Martin Ødegaard, Leandro Trossard, and Mikel Merino, replacing Eberechi Eze, Gabriel Martinelli, and Martín Zubimendi.

Hwang was lucky to avoid a red card for a bad tackle on Myles Lewis-Skelly, which made Arteta angry. The referee, Robert Jones, gave Hwang a yellow card, and VAR didn't take any further action.

In the 66th minute, Johnstone tipped Rice's free kick over the bar. Shortly after, he made a great save to prevent Rice's shot from going in.

But Johnstone then went from hero to zero.

He touched Saka's corner kick onto the post, and the ball bounced off him and into the goal.

Ødegaard's shot hit the side of the net, and Viktor Gyökeres shot wide. Soon after, Gyökeres was replaced by Jesus with 10 minutes remaining. Gyökeres hasn't scored in five games.

Arsenal seemed set to win 1-0. But substitute Arokodare headed in Mateus Mane's cross, tying the game.

But in the fourth of six added minutes, another own goal gave Arsenal the three points. It could be a huge win in their title chase.

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