Here’s the latest Arsenal injury update ahead of the Chelsea clash, covering key players like Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, and Kai Havertz.

Declan Rice is in a race to recover in time for Arsenal’s Sunday trip to Chelsea. The 25-year-old missed the midweek clash against Inter Milan after sustaining an injury in last weekend’s game with Newcastle. Reports suggest Rice has a broken toe from the St James’ Park match, but he’s determined to push through the pain to face Chelsea. He has also been named in England’s squad for upcoming Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland, with some optimism about his fitness.

However, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted in his pre-match press conference that Rice’s availability remains uncertain, saying, “I have to be very vague on that one because there’s no clarity on whether he’s going to be fit for the weekend. [Whether he has a broken toe is] for the doctor…he hasn’t trained yet, so it’s unclear if he’ll be ready.”

A positive from Arsenal’s 1-0 loss to Inter was the return of Martin Odegaard, who made his first appearance in over two months as a late substitute. On his potential involvement against Chelsea, Arteta commented, “Everyone in the squad is fit and available to start, so it will just be a decision on timing.”

Arteta also provided updates on Kai Havertz and Mikel Merino, both of whom had to leave the Inter match early. “We’ll have to see tomorrow how they respond,” he said. “Kai had a nasty cut that forced him off, and Mikel wasn’t feeling well the day before, so we made the decision to substitute him at half-time.”