Martin Ødegaard is stepping up at the right time for Arsenal’s title race


Martin Ødegaard is stepping up at the right time for Arsenal’s title race

The captain excelled against West Ham on Sunday, making 107 passes, creating seven chances and laying on two assists The winter break came at the perfect time for Arsenal. After a run of one win in seven matches – including a three-game losing streak – at the turn of the year, Mikel Arteta had to regroup and get his team’s campaign back on track. Arsenal had dropped behind Liverpool in the title race and were also knocked out of the FA Cup by Jürgen Klopp’s team at the Emirates. A season that had promised so much was threatening to peter out.

The break was key. Arsenal returned to action with a bang, smashing Crystal Palace 5-0 at the Emirates. They won at Nottingham Forest, avenged their FA Cup loss to Liverpool with a 3-1 home win and utterly destroyed West Ham 6-0 at the London Stadium. They have scored 16 goals in their last four games while conceding just twice – one of which was an own goal. Arsenal are firing once more.

A number of their key players have begun to hit their stride again. Gabriel Martinelli, their joint-top scorer last season with Martin Ødegaard, is finding the net again; he has scored more goals in his last four games (three) than he managed in his 18 previous outings (two). Bukayo Saka is also in fine form on the other flank; he has scored or set up a goal in each of Arsenal’s last four matches. And Ødegaard is pulling the strings in the middle of the park again.

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