Gabriel Magalhaes believes that there’s a player in Arsenal’s current squad who is more skilful than Eberechi Eze in training.
The Gunners have built an extremely talented squad full of depth in every area of the pitch in recent years.
Andrea Berta splashed £250 million on eight new recruits over the summer, and this has prompted many fans and pundits to claim that Mikel Arteta now has the best ensemble in world football.
Eze is among those who arrived for big money and has added significant star quality to the North Londoners’ roster, although Gabriel still feels one player trumps the England international for the title of most skilful at the Emirates.
Gabriel Magalhaes says Martin Odegaard is Arsenal’s most skilful player in training
Martin Odegaard has perhaps become an undervalued member of Arsenal’s squad over the last 12 months.
While the players at Sohba Realty are huge admirers of the Norwegian, his reputation on the outside has been damaged by one underwhelming season.
Odegaard won Arsenal’s player of the season award twice in a row between 2022 and 2024, while he has captained the Gunners through their best period in the last 20 years.
That said, despite the influx of creative talent in N5 over the summer, Gabriel still appreciates his skipper.
Speaking to Sky Sports, the Brazilian claimed that Odegaard is more skilful than anyone in Arsenal’s squad, including Eze.
“The most skilful in training, who is it?” Gabriel was asked.
“Martin Odegaard,” he responded, with little hesitation.
“He always tries to put it through the legs or something like that. Eze as well, but I’ve been here a long time and I’ve seen a lot of what Martin has been doing.”
Arsenal are massively missing Martin Odegaard at the moment
As good as Eze is, he looks more comfortable on the left and he’s not quite able to produce what Odegaard can in a central role.
The Norway international is one of the best passers in world football, both in terms of moving the ball up the pitch from deep areas and at moving the ball into the penalty area.
Eze’s game is more focused on receiving the ball in the pockets and combining with those around him, before getting shots off.
Odegaard is a creative metronome, intent on dictating an entire attack by having a load of touches in the middle and attacking thirds.
Together, the two players could complement each other effectively. Without Odegaard, Arsenal are missing their creator in chief, their primary playmaker and orchestrator from the middle of the park.
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