Mikel Arteta addresses Arsenal injury concerns amid Martin Odegaard update and Four other Gunners stars after Sporting CP Match

Arsenal injury news: The Gunners had several key first-team players out for last night's 2-2 draw against Sporting CP, and are back in action on Sunday against high-flying Fulham.

Arsenal drew 2-2 with Sporting CP in the first leg of their Europa League round of 16 clash.

William Saliba's first-half opener was cancelled out by Goncalio Ignacio before Paulinho gave the Portuguese outfit the lead just after half-time. However, a freak own goal from Hidemasa Morita levelled the scoreline in Lisbon, leaving next week's second leg at the Emirates Stadium wide open.

But first, Mikel Arteta's men will travel to Craven Cottage on Sunday when they will take on Marco Silva's Fulham in the Premier League. Ahead of that highly-anticipated matchup, football.london has rounded up all the latest news on any Gunners players dealing with injuries as Arteta looks to extend his side's five-point lead at the top of the table.

Martin Odegaard

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard missed the game against Sporting due to illness football.london understands. An illness bug has passed through the Gunners camp with midfielder Fabio Vieira having to be replaced by Gabriel Martinelli for Wednesday's press conference duties because of a sore throat, although Vieira played the full 90 minutes in Lisbon.

Odegaard did travel to the Portuguese capital, but he was eventually deemed unwell to play.

What Arteta has said: "In other moments we had total control of the game and we lost a little bit of threat today, especially with the four players we are missing in our frontline

Kieran Tierney

Arsenal were without left-back Kieran Tierney for Thursday's Europa League clash against Sporting CP.

The Scottish international left the club's London Colney training ground on Wednesday about 45 minutes before training began, with some fans fearing he had suffered an injury. However, football.london understands that the Scottish international is merely unwell.

What Arteta has said: "Let’s see how they (Tierney, Leandro Trossard and Eddie Nketiah) evolve. Obviously we’ve had a few issues in the last few days and I am trying to accommodate everybody and get everyone in the best possible condition for tomorrow."

Expected return date: N/A

Leandro Trossard

Trossard picked up a groin injury against Bournemouth before signalling to the coaching staff that he could no longer continue and he was eventually substituted for Emile Smith Rowe in the 22nd minute.

The early prognosis on Trossard's injury is that it is not thought to be serious, football.london understands, although he did miss training on Wednesday and was out of the squad for the trip to Lisbon.

What Arteta has said: "It is a worry, he came to me straight away and said he couldn't continue, he'd felt something when he was tracking back, so we had to take him off", the Spaniard said when asked what had happened to the talented attacker. "We'll assess him and see how he is."

Expected return date: N/A

Eddie Nketiah

Eddie Nketiah had found himself on the bench for recent wins over Leicester and Everton following a slight drop in form. Arsenal boss Arteta then confirmed after his substitute appearance against the Toffees that the young striker had suffered with a slight injury concern.

Arsenal then decided not to bring the Hale End academy graduate to Lisbon.

What Arteta has said: "We are assessing him," the Spaniard said in his pre-match press conference. "It's a bit uncertain what will happen with him to be honest in the training sessions.

"Let’s see, let’s keep the options open. He’s very positive about it and hopefully he’ll be fine."

Expected return date: N/A

Gabriel Jesus

Having suffered medial ligament damage whilst playing for Brazil against Cameroon in the World Cup group stages, Jesus returned to London to undergo surgery on his knee, with an expectation that he will be out for at least another month of footballing action.

Arsenal are hopeful of having Jesus back in the first-team squad before the international break towards the end of March, football.london understands. The north London outfit welcome Crystal Palace to the Emirates Stadium before club action pauses for a fortnight due to international fixtures.

On Wednesday, Jesus took part in the open training session with his teammates, seemingly getting closer to making his long-awaited return but football.london understands that he didn't travel with the rest of the squad for the aforementioned draw against Sporting.

What Arteta has said: "We will try not to rush him back, we will try to make a fair assessment between what he needs and when is comfortable and as well giving the team a boost that it’s going to need in the next few weeks for sure.

"Everything is going well, he needs time as well to get himself that confidence and that physical state that is necessary to compete with a free mind and once he’s free to do that, we will throw him in."

Expected return date: March.

Mohamed Elneny

Elneny started in the FA Cup win over Oxford United and played the whole 90 minutes. However, the Egyptian was absent for Arteta's squad for the 2-0 win at Tottenham, with a knee issue picked up in training ahead of the clash being assessed. Additionally, there was no place on the bench to face Manchester United.

A club statement last month then confirmed that the former Basel man will be out for an extended period of time, although no timescale was given on his expected return. Elneny has since penned a new deal at Arsenal as he closes in on a return.

Expected return date: N/A

READ NEXT: