Arsenal captain Odegaard returns to form, boosting team's attacking prospects

After a summer filled with concerns and anxiety, Arsenal may not need to worry about lacking a world-class attacker—the answer has already been within the squad.

You could choose to praise Kai Havertz, who used clever touches and feints to make Chelsea's defense look uncomfortable in the team's 2-1 victory over Chelsea. Bukayo Saka did not directly contribute to a goal, but he provided everything else. However, here we want to give the applause to Martin Odegaard, who deserves this recognition.

The captain's form had previously drawn criticism

It was not until Arsenal won the Premier League title again after 22 years that the dissatisfaction surrounding this captain truly faded. Odegaard's struggles last season occasionally spread from social media to the stands at the Emirates Stadium—during some matches, his tendency to drop too deep drew frustrated sighs from supporters. Looking back several months later, those criticisms may have had some basis.

Statistical comparisons show a decline

In the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons, Odegaard was one of the Premier League's outstanding pure creators, with a high passing volume, strong progression ability, and pressing efficiency comparable to that of a union organizer. Compared with most players of his generation, he was clearly superior. But when the comparison is with himself, the problems become apparent—people expect him to be the league's best creator, a player who combines pressing, progression, passing direction, and a large number of goals.

During Arsenal's first title challenge in the 2022-23 season, Odegaard scored 15 goals. Despite a significant overperformance compared with his expected goals figure, he was at least always appearing in scoring positions. He took 53 shots in the previous season, followed by 93 and 77, but that figure dropped sharply to 49 last season, with his shots per 90 minutes falling below two, after previously being significantly higher. When Arsenal won the title last season, this attacking midfielder's shots per 90 minutes were even lower than those of defensive midfielder Christian Norgaard or left-back Riccardo Calafiori.