Rice sustained a foot problem in the Gunners’ 1-0 Premier League defeat at Newcastle and has not travelled to Italy. Arsenal, who trail leaders Liverpool by seven points, face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. “Declan unfortunately picked up an injury against Newcastle,” said Arteta.
“It is a knock, a problem on his foot, and he wasn’t comfortable to put his boots on so at the moment he is not fit. “He wasn’t feeling good the last few days. We’ll have to assess him on Thursday and see if he’s ready for Chelsea.
” In a major boost to Arteta however, Martin Odegaard is set for an imminent return following an ankle injury which has sidelined the Gunners skipper for two months. Odegaard, 25, trained with his team-mates at Arsenal’s London Colney base on Tuesday before heading out to Milan. However, Arteta confirmed Bukayo Saka will captain his side, indicating the Norwegian will be on the bench for Wednesday’s fixture at the San Siro.
“It’s great to have him back,” added Arteta. “He trained with us for the first time today. He’s back a bit earlier than we expected, but it’s great to have him here and we will decide if we use him tomorrow.
” Arsenal’s build-up has been overshadowed by the shock departure of sporting director Edu. The former Arsenal player – a member of Arsene Wenger’s 2004 ‘Invincibles’ squad – handed in his resignation this week and is reportedly set to link up with Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis. E.
