Mikel Arteta shares the simple instruction behind Martin Odegaard’s stunning form
Martin Odegaard has four goals in five games this season.
That’s already quadruple his entire return from last campaign, a season ravaged by injury that limited him to just one goal.
He’s been named Man of the Match in all but one competitive game he has played, and is, right now, arguably the best player in the Premier League.
Odegaard is clearly feeling good physically and emotionally after rediscovering his confidence after the World Cup. But there’s more to it than that.
There’s been a deliberate tactical change in how Mikel Arteta is using his captain, and after the Napoli win, the manager explained exactly what he has told him to do differently.
Asked whether Odegaard’s more advanced positions were by instruction, Arteta said: “Yes, because he can. We have now a lot of players that can take the ball there and progress the ball much better than we did in the past.
“And when that happens, he needs to take different heights and angles and positions in order to disorganise the opponent, and he’s done that really well tonight.”
Why Martin Odegaard is playing further forward this season
In previous seasons, Martin Odegaard has operated as an all-thirds player. With a less experienced midfield around him, he had to drop deep to collect the ball, progress play and then arrive in the final third.
It spread his influence across the pitch but diluted his impact in the areas where he’s most dangerous.
But in a world where you have Declan Rice, Bruno Guimaraes, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino, all capable of progressing the ball from deep, you don’t need Odegaard to be this sort of player.
Arteta knows this, and has told Odegaard to be a proper number 10 — occupy the spaces between the lines, arrive in the box and be the difference maker in the final third.
Back in 2021, referring to Emile Smith Rowe at the time, Arteta said that an incredible season for an Arsenal number 10 meant 15 goals and 10 assists.
Odegaard came close to that in 2022-23, registering 15 goals and seven assists. And that was before Arteta had this calibre of midfield around him.
Add to that, the players he clearly plays best with — Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Ben White — are all fit. And when all four of them are fit and on the pitch, Arsenal play their best football. It’s no coincidence.
If Odegaard can keep this vein of form up this season, we’re talking about the Player of the Season leading Arsenal to back-to-back Premier League titles.