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Ståle Solbakken is unsure if captain Martin Ødegaard is ready to play for Norway.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hit the wire to the Norwegian national team manager last night.
– He called me. We discussed the situation openly and honestly. He didn’t have much more information than what had come forward and what Martin had said to both the medical team at Arsenal and to us, says Ståle Solbakken.
The national team coach says that he has one plan if Ødegaard is with you, and one plan if he is not.
Ødegaard replaces Hugo Veltesen, who should have a hint of a stretch.
How often does a club manager like Arteta call before a meeting? Is that common practice? asks VG.
– No, it’s not, but we’ve talked a few times. It has something to do with the fact that he is your captain and that I have visited there a few times. I can’t call everyone, but I can there, since I’ve been there, says Solbakken.
The national team manager says he trusts one hundred percent in the national team captain, who felt it on his body after 95 minutes against Chelsea on Sunday.
– He has trained football one and a half times in the last eight weeks since the injury. When he plays 95 minutes, may there be a reaction, says the national team manager.
Solbakken confirmed earlier on Monday at Ødegaard was on his way to Norwayeven though he was left out of the national team squad.
The Drammenseren suffered an ankle injury against Austria in September. He hadn’t played since then until he came on in overtime against Inter last week.
The national team selection was the day before the Inter match.
This weekend, Ødegaard played the entire match for Arsenal against Chelsea.
– This will be a decision that will hopefully be made within a couple of days between the medical team and Martin. It is he who must feel 100 percent ready for this, says Solbakken.
Get the latest news about Ødegaard in «Footballpodden»:
Mikel Arteta said at the press conference before the match against Chelsea that they were three parties that would come to a decision on whether Ødegaard could play for Norway or not.
– Let’s see how it goes, how he feels after playing the game, Arteta said.
So it sounds like Arsenal have an expectation that they have a say in the team if he will play for the national team? asks VG Solbakken.
– He can mean that. At least we had a nice discussion yesterday with that in mind. He wouldn’t have sat on that plane if we didn’t think it was a possibility, says the national team coach.
Mikel Arteta
Apart from Hugo Vetlesen, Solbakken says that David Møller Wolfe will also not be seen in the national team uniform in the coming week.
To replace Wolfe, Toulouse player Warren Kamanzi has been brought in.
In addition, there has been tension as to whether Julian Ryerson wanted to announce his retirement from the national team.
That tension quickly disappeared when the Borussia Dortmund player appeared outside the player hotel.
Ryerson suffered an injury against Augsburg at the end of October, but was back on the pitch for the yellow and black against Mainz this weekend.
Norway has the same number of points as both Austria and Slovenia before the last two games in the Nations League group stage with seven.
Slovenia and Kazakhstan are both Norway and Austria’s opponents.
Norway meets Slovenia at the same time as Austria meets Kazakhstan on Thursday, before Kazakhstan comes to Ullevaal and Austria must travel to Slovenia on Sunday.
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