At a Glance:
- Martin Odegaard is a doubt for Arsenal’s game against Fulham on Saturday.
- Sean Dyche has defended Mikel Arteta’s style of play.
- The Gunners have hired a new physio to address persistent injury problems.
Arsenal are set to play Fulham on Saturday evening in the Premier League, kicking off a huge week for Mikel Arteta’s team.
The Gunners have the opportunity to move six points clear of Manchester City when they entertain the Cottagers. If they do manage this, Pep Guardiola’s team will be under immense pressure when they make the short trip to Merseyside to face Everton on Monday night.
If these results go Arsenal’s way, the North Londoners will find themselves in an almost unassailable position in the title race. Combine this with clinching a Champions League final spot on Tuesday night when they host Atletico Madrid, and this could go down as one of the best weeks in the North London club’s recent history – or one of the worst.
With that said, here is the latest Arsenal news today, including updates on Martin Odegaard, Sean Dyche and a new physio.
Martin Odegaard not pictured with Arsenal squad before Fulham
Arsenal have a number of injury issues to contend with heading into their clash with Fulham. Mikel Merino remains absent, while Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz have been ruled out.
Captain Martin Odegaard was revealed to be a doubt by Mikel Arteta in his press conference on Friday afternoon, and a new update seems to suggest that the Norwegian won’t make the game. According to Conor Humm on Twitter, Odegaard wasn’t pictured with the Arsenal squad on their pre-match walk on Saturday morning.
🚨 Martin Ødegaard was NOT spotted with the Arsenal squad on their pre-match walk this morning. ❌🇳🇴 [@TikiTakaConnor]
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) May 2, 2026
This absence likely means he won’t be involved, meaning the Gunners will be without their skipper once again this term.
Sean Dyche defends Mikel Arteta and Arsenal
Arsenal have consistently been berated for their pragmatic style of play this season. Many have felt the Gunners’ defensive approach and obsessive focus on set-pieces have had a negative impact on the league, and somehow this makes them less worthy potential winners.
However, speaking on talkSPORT, Sean Dyche revealed that he’s having none of this discourse. The former Premier League manager argued that Arteta ‘deserves a lot of credit’ for adapting his tactics this term.
“I actually think Arteta, and as long as they do get it done of course, deserves a lot of credit because he’s had a lot of noise, you know, set-pieces and all that,” Dyche said.
“But they couldn’t win the league doing it the other way. They tried playing the beautiful game, and they couldn’t find the final moments to go and see it over the line. So they’ve changed that this season.
“It seems pretty apparent to me. I saw some stats the other day, more long balls and that sort of stuff. Well fine, he’s gone right ok, ‘we tried that bit it didn’t work’.
“It would be more mad for me if they just kept doing the same thing and couldn’t win it, so they’ve tried something different, and so far, they’re in the driving seat.”
Arsenal hire new physio
Arsenal’s injury issues over the last two seasons have left the club frustrated and wondering whether they’re doing something wrong on the fitness front. Rather than accept their fate, the Gunners have decided to address these problems.
According to the Telegraph, Arsenal have brought in a new physio from Spain, who will undertake a thorough review of the injury situation at the Emirates. The club are eager to understand where they can make altercations to their training plans and regimes to mitigate injury issues heading forward.
The physio in question is Joaquin Acedo, who is a friend of Mikel Arteta’s. It’s believed that there has been tension around the club because of the number of fitness problems the squad has suffered, and they now want to fix this.
