The Norway international has been on the sidelines for the past six weeks with an ankle problem and he has yet to return to team training with the north London giants.

Odegaard has been working out in the gym over the past few days and when asked about his availability, the manager said that he won't be available on Saturday.

The Spanish tactician added that next week will be a different story and it may not be long before he is back in contention for first-team duty.

He said: "I think he’s not going to be fit for this game. Next week will be a different story, but again, in that later stage of rehab.

"He is at the moment, because he’s doing already a lot of the stuff, he needs to clear some markers, he needs to be comfortable doing things especially with the ball. Next week will be crucial to understand how close he is."

Arsenal have coped well with the absence of Odegaard. Leandro Trossard has played alongside Kai Havertz up front in a 4-4-2 formation.

The duo have formed a solid partnership and we could see something similar in tomorrow's visit of the Vitality Stadium.

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