Martin Odegaard injury news: Arsenal captain makes return admission over injury recovery ahead of Atletico Madrid Champions League clash

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has admitted that he is unsure when he will return from his knee injury.

The Norwegian remains sidelined for Tuesday's Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid after he picked up a knee injury in the win over West Ham United earlier this month.

However, he has spoken about how he picked up the injury in the matchday programme for the European encounter against Diego Simeone's charges.

"I feel like I’ve been really unlucky a few times this season," Odegaard said. "It was a knee-to-knee contact in the West Ham game, and at the time I didn’t know if it was bad or not because they can be quite painful, but normally you can run it off.

"So that's why I tried to keep going, to see if it was getting better. I was hoping it was just a knock that would improve in a couple of minutes. But it didn't get better, and I felt like something was wrong, so in the end it was better to come off.

"As soon as we got inside, the medical team had a proper look at it. When the adrenaline stopped flowing and it settled down a bit, then it was quite sore."

Odegaard unsure over Arsenal injury return date

Odegaard revealed that he went back to Norway to rest his knee before he returned to London around a week ago to step up his recovery.

Arsenal supporters will be pleased to hear that Odegaard's "rehab is going well", although the 26-year-old stopped short of providing an estimated timeframe for his return to action.

"It's tricky to set a return date with this type of injury because, especially it being my left leg, a lot depends on how it goes when I start getting back on the pitch," Odegaard added.

"Sometimes it can be quite sore when you start passing the ball and shooting and all these things with that leg, so it’s really hard to say a date.

"All I can say is I'm progressing really well at the moment. I think we will know more when I start getting back on the training pitches, and we'll see how that goes. If that goes really well, then it can be quick."

How are Arsenal dealing with Odegaard's injury?

Arsenal will want to see their skipper make a speedy recovery, but they do have a number of options to cope with his absence.

Eberechi Eze joined Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi in the midfield three for Saturday's narrow 1-0 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Mikel Merino is another option to deputise in Odegaard's absence, and he should be full of confidence after scoring twice for Spain in their World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria last week.

Mikel Arteta can also call upon youngster Ethan Nwaneri, so the Arsenal boss ultimately has enough options to name a strong midfield despite being without Odegaard's services.