The Martin Odegaard effect was clearly evident for Arsenal in their 1-1 draw over at Stamford Bridge, with Mikel Arteta full of praise for his captain following his first appearance in two months.
The Arsenal captain made his first start against Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea on Sunday evening following an ankle injury picked up whilst on International duty with Norway in September. It was Odegaard who helped create the goal for Arsenal, as the Norwegian’s perfectly weighted pass lofted over the Chelsea backline and set up Gabriel Martinelli to open the scoring. And whilst Arsenal couldn’t hold onto the win, the impact Odegaard had on the performance of the team was clear to see.
Despite playing just five minutes of football since his injury, Odegaard somehow completed the full 95 minutes versus Chelsea, and Arteta was in awe of his captain’s performance following the draw. Highlighting in particular the fitness levels showed by the midfielder. “Our player [Odegaard] has been out six weeks and barely trained with the team. To be able to play at this level in the Premier League tells you how much we looks after himself and the leadership and character he has.”
In the games following Odegaard’s ankle injury, Arteta had decided to adopt a change in system, adopting a more structured 4-4-2 formation with Leandro Trossard taking the place of Odegaard in the XI. And whilst many would struggle to live up to that of a midfielder that possesses the quality Odegaard does, the Belgian has lacked the same creativity and Arsenal’s performances and results have suffered as a result over recent weeks. With recent defeats at AFC Bournemouth and Newcastle Utd showing a clear lack of creative ideas from Arsenal as they collected zero points from the two away tests.
According to SofaScore, in the Gunners previous Premier League encounter, where Alexander Isak’s header was enough to secure the Magpies a 1-0 win, Arteta’s side managed to create just one big chance at St. James Park. With Trossard himself managing just 0.01 expected assists (xA) during his 71 minutes before being replaced by youngster Ethan Nwaneri.
However, it was a different story during the clash with Chelsea. With Odegaard back in the midfield, Arsenal managed 4 big chances, with Odegaard creating two of them – one of which resulted in an assist for the Arsenal captain. The Norwegian midfielder’s four key passes also help show the large difference in creativity that his return brings, as Trossard failed to complete a single key pass at the defeat in Newcastle. And whilst Arsenal failed to leave Stamford Bridge with all three points, the Gunners certainly looked more fluid with their captain back in the team, with Arteta agreeing Odegaard makes his team click, stating “Everything flows better with players like this. Today we clicked much better.”
Odegaard’s return gives Arsenal fans a reason for hope after a tough month of results, which have seen the Gunners slip to nine points behind league leaders Liverpool. However with the captain back in the team and at full fitness, Mikel Arteta will be hoping his side can put together a winning run following the November international break in order to close the gap at the top of the table and end a 20-year wait for the Premier League trophy in the red side of North London.