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Martin Odegaard has offered Arsenal supporters a huge update on his recovery from an ankle injury that has kept him out for the last four weeks. While in action for Norway during the September international break, Odegaard went over awkwardly on his ankle and has subsequently missed Arsenal's last seven games.

Given his importance, Mikel Arteta has been regularly asked for updates with the Gunners boss providing a new one before the Southampton clash. "Martin is very difficult," he said. "I expected still with the boot and a lot of things but he’s working so hard and he’s feeling good and he’s pushing it. So difficult to give a timeline."

Though Arteta was reluctant to issue a significant update on Odegaard's condition, the man himself is of the belief he will be back sooner than initially expected. "In the last week or so I’ve made really good progress," he said in his programme notes.

"I’m getting better and better by the day and feel it’s going well. When you feel like things are moving forward, it gives you motivation to do more and more and work harder. Today is our last game before another international break, so that gives me some more time to work on the rehab, too.

"Hopefully it won’t be much longer — I think we will know more as soon as I get out on the training pitches and we see how my ankle responds to that. At the moment it’s progressing well and it looks better than we were thinking, but we’ve still got to take every day as it comes."

Though the 25-year-old is hopeful of a swift return, Norway boss Stale Solbakken is far less optimistic. In Norwegian newspaper Dagsavisen, as quoted by Daily Cannon, he said: "There is great progress in relation to pain and injury, but he is a long way from playing matches. I don’t think anyone knows , and I don’t think he knows it himself either."

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A return for Odegaard arriving at the conclusion of the October international break appears highly unlikely, however Odegaard looks to have taken a huge step in his rehabilitation process. In a clip uploaded to X (formerly Twitter) by Arsenal, the Arsenal captain has been filmed running on a treadmill at London Colney.

The video, which was uploaded on Tuesday evening also captures him saying, "what a day, running on the AlterG." Considering the worrying updates provided by others, it will have been a welcome sight to see Odegaard stepping up his work towards returning.

Though he is not yet out on the grass, seeing him moving on from just gym work or strength and conditioning training is a boost and Odegaard now has an extended break before Arsenal's next game.