Ahead of Wednesday’s EFL Cup football match, Arsenal has responded with two 1-0 Premier League victories following a poor start. As the Gunners begin their quest for EFL Cup glory, head coach Mikel Arteta believes his young captains will lead Arsenal out of the doldrums and praised Odegaard.
Arsenal has won two games straight in a row with 1-0 football results after a poor start to the Premier League. These two games were played against Norwich City and Burnley, with Arteta citing Martin Odegaard as a key factor in their improvement.
The Gunners had lost their first three Premier League games, but confidence is growing ahead of their first cup match against AFC Wimbledon on Wednesday. Arsenal has only failed to advance past the third round of the competition once in the last 18 years.
In the EPL match against Burnley, last time out Odegaard scored the game-winning goal, he joined the club on a permanent basis from Real Madrid following a loan spell at Emirates Stadium.
Arteta praised Odegaard for making a difference while also emphasizing the importance of fellow young midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga, who turns 22 in October. Arsenal’s experienced striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang remains captain, but the team now has others with invaluable captaincy experience.
“I think we are building some leadership in the group,” Arteta said according to the official club website. “It’s a really young group, with a lot of players under 23. Martin is the captain of the [Norway] national team and Sambi was the captain at Anderlecht.”
“Martin has this capacity to do that with his talent, taking the ball in moments where others probably refuse to, but as well with his attitude, his rhythm, and the way he presses and puts people under pressure. He’s probably the first to do it. I was really impressed with Auba [Aubameyang] as well – I think his rhythm and high pressing was fantastic.”
