Arteta backs Odegaard to keep deciding games for Arsenal

Mikel Arteta has praised Martin Odegaard’s goalscoring form and said the Arsenal captain has the ability to decide games.

Odegaard scored the winner as Arsenal won 1-0 at Napoli in their Champions League opener on Wednesday, scoring his fourth goal in five games so far this season.

The 27-year-old had a tough season in 2025/26, despite Arsenal winning the Premier League, with injuries stunting his impact as Odegaard scored just one league goal.

Arteta has been delighted with the midfielder’s return to form and said he wants Odegaard to keep getting into goalscoring positions.

“That’s what we need, the players with that mindset to decide the game, and to play with that personality, that an action might not happen, it’s the next one, the next one, and keep insisting, keep taking chances and risks,” Arteta said.

“He’s getting into those positions much more in recent games, and now you feel he has this emotional state that he knows that the ball can go in, and he scored an incredible goal tonight.”

Asked if Odegaard has been specifically instructed to get into more goalscoring areas, Arteta added: “Yes, because he can, and we have now a lot of players that can take the ball there and they can progress the ball much better than we did in the past. 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.

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