Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has lavished praise on Martin Odegaard and has suggested that he has what it takes to be the club’s new captain.
The skipper’s armband at Arsenal has gone through a lot over the years. Our last three permanent captains have all been stripped of their captaincy for one reason or another – Laurent Koscielny wanted to leave, Granit Xhaka had his problems with the fans, while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s disciplinary issues cost him his role.
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Arsenal are without a skipper now, but if Arteta’s comments are anything to go by, Odegaard is the frontrunner to become the club’s next captain.
Mikel Arteta hints Martin Odegaard could be the next Arsenal captain
In an interaction with the media during pre-season in the United States, Arteta said, as per The Athletic: “Martin has a lot of qualities that we want as a captain. One of them is that he thinks about the team before himself.
“He had a period at the start where he wasn’t playing, he was the first in training, the last to leave, asking the right questions – why he wasn’t playing, what he had to do – he was always listening, he was always helping his teammates.
“His attitude was absolutely phenomenal. That made me think that this guy is putting the team in front of himself and the captain has to do that always.”
The Insider’s View
It was always going to be between Kieran Tierney and Odegaard for the Arsenal captaincy, and either choice would’ve been welcomed by the fans.
Tierney’s leadership qualities are no secret to anyone. He became Celtic’s youngest ever skipper at the age of 20, and Brendan Rodgers even went on to claim that he was born to be the captain of the club.
Tierney would surely be under consideration for the Arsenal captaincy, but Odegaard may just be the better option for the Gunners at this moment in time.
The Norwegian, who is also the captain of his country, plays almost every game for us. He is rarely ever injured and leads us from the front every time. He would be a fantastic option, and even though he has only been with us for 18 months, we believe he’s the right choice.
