Martin Odegaard showed signs of his brilliant best against Aston Villa, building on his performance against Brighton.
The Norwegian scored his first goal of the season against the Seagulls, readying himself for the blockbuster night against Aston Villa days later.
Though Arsenal fans were frustrated by the midfield in the first half against Villa, the middle three grew into the game after the interval.
In attacking midfield, Odegaard pulled the strings to punish Unai Emery’s side, carving the visitors open with intricate passes, but one of his flaws couldn’t be ignored.
Martin Odegaard was brilliant against Aston Villa, but his lack of duel-winning is a problem
Odegaard has looked back at his best recently, and certainly did in the second half against Villa.
For all of the captain’s playmaking genius, his weakness when contesting duels stood out, particularly early into the contest.
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Maybe it was because of the absence of Declan Rice due to injury that Odegaard was uncertain in possession at times, but Arteta will want him to strengthen in duels going forward.
The midfielder won 45% of his duels against Villa, a percentage that needed to increase for his performance to be regarded as perfect.
It may seem like a minor detail on what was a tremendous night for Odegaard, but given how important duel-winning is to Arteta, it’s a weakness that has to be corrected in this system.
Martin Odegaard hailed as Arsenal’s difference-maker against Aston Villa
Eberechi Eze might’ve winced watching Arsenal’s win over Villa from the sidelines, as Odegaard strengthened his claim to the starting XI once again.
The 27-year-old showed why he’s club captain in the second half, leading by example in the press and when going forward.
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Pundit Clinton Morrison summed Odegaard’s performance up when speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live’s coverage of the match, calling the skipper the ‘difference’.
“The difference was Odegaard,” Morrison said.
“In the second half, he took over the game and basically said: ‘This is our place, I’m grabbing this game by the scruff of the neck.’ And he started to get into pockets.”
It was a showing of Odegaard returning to his best, with the only thing missing being some additional strength.
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