Mikel Arteta's ambitious Declan Rice plan after Arsenal star suffers injury blow

Mikel Arteta is hoping to use Declan Rice for Arsenal's trip to Chelsea on Sunday despite the midfielder suffering a broken toe.

Rice picked up the injury during the defeat to Newcastle last Saturday and missed the Champions League loss at Inter Milan as a result. The 25-year-old was still selected in England's squad for their games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

And Mirror Football reported on Thursday that Rice is ready to play through the pain barrier for club and country. The Gunners face a crucial trip to Chelsea on Sunday evening, with the Blues currently above them in the table.

Arteta's side are seven points adrift of leaders Liverpool and badly need a win to end a two-game losing streak. The situation around Rice's availability is causing a headache for the Arsenal boss though.

According to ESPN, the Gunners are weighing up whether to play Rice this weekend. Arteta is hopeful that Rice will be able to manage his injury and start in midfield at Stamford Bridge.

Another defeat for Arsenal, which would be their fourth in seven games across all competitions, would be a potentially fatal blow to their title hopes. Arteta will be hoping his ambitious plan to push the pain barrier is able to be pulled off.

As Mirror Football reported on Thursday though, there may well be some concern over that plan. Rice even struggled to put a boot on earlier this week and could not train properly.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Arsenal risk Declan Rice against Chelsea? Comment below.

The Gunners are taking heart from the fact that players do play with broken toes. Arteta has been boosted by the return to fitness of captain Martin Odegaard, who has been ruled out since September's international break.

"The positive news is it’s great to have Martin back. He’s trained with us for the first time, a full session today. He felt good, it’s a bit earlier than we expected, but he wanted to be with the team," Arteta said before the Inter defeat.

"But at least it’s a big step that he’s travelled with us and is part of the team. Declan unfortunately has picked up an injury against Newcastle. He was able to finish the game but he wasn’t feeling good in the last few days.

"We have to assess him on Thursday to understand whether he will be fit or not for the weekend. It was a knock so it’s a problem with his foot. He wasn’t comfortable with it so at the moment he’s not fit."

He added after the defeat: "If we play the way we play, we‘ll have a big chance to win against Chelsea. That‘s the way we have to go. I told them that I’m proud of them. We are disappointed because we didn’t get what we wanted out of the game, that’s for sure."

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