I can remember all the way back in 2015 when Martin Ødegaard signed for Real Madrid as a teenager and became their youngest ever signing. I can remember all the jokes at the time about how much he was earning in his salary and what a dream it would be for a teen to be able to pull money out of thin air every second. I also remember the quieter optimism that this might soon be one of the world’s best players.
Six years on from that Real Madrid move, it hadn’t quite worked out. Ødegaard made just 8 appearances for Los Blancos, and was loaned out nearly every year. In 2021, he signed his final loan deal – with Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal. Finally, it stuck. He quickly became one of the Gunners’ most important players, and earned the captaincy badge ahead of the 2022-23 season.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut last year, in Arsenal’s best of all under Arteta, Ødegaard looked like a shadow of himself. He suffered through injury and the incoming transfer of Eberechi Eze, who could finally challenge his previously automatic place in the eleven. The Norwegian captain scored just 1 goal with 6 assists, his lowest return in a full Premier League season.
Embed from Getty ImagesThis, coming at a time when Arsenal were arguably stronger than ever before under Mikel Arteta. His brilliance was there for all to see, but his performance and output left more to be desired.
Going into this season, even despite his fantastic World Cup campaign, fans might have wondered if we were witnessing the slow decline of Ødegaard, soon to be fazed out by the likes of Bruno G. and Eze for good.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut instead, it’s been the opposite. Martin Ødegaard has not only been Arsenal’s best player to start this season, but arguably the best in the Premier League over the opening three matches. It might be early days and too soon to call, but the Norwegian midfielder looks to be in for the season of his life at the moment. So what’s changed this season? Why has Ødegaard entered the new 2026-27 season oozing with confidence and class?
ØDEGAARD’S TIGHT-SPACE CONNECTIONS
Embed from Getty ImagesMartin Ødegaard is a player that thrives in tight-spaces. He lives for those moments where he’s surrounded by three or four defenders, and can unpick the lock that frees a teammate ahead.
This has worked particularly well in Arsenal’s favour this season with the entire side clicking in complete harmony. Most notably, what they’ve been able to form down the wing on both sides of the pitch.
Embed from Getty ImagesOn the right side, where the Arsenal skipper operates, Ben White and Bukayo Saka have reformed that connection that worked so brilliantly a few seasons back – before the arrival of Jurriën Timber.
Since Timber’s entered the fold it’s been assumed that White just isn’t as good. I think Ben White has everything he needs to be a Premier League winning right-back. He’s a tremendously intelligent footballer who understands when and where to overlap, how to affectively overload spaces down the wing, and how to link up with his teammates. With White’s intelligent movement (combined with Havertz and Ødegaard on the right too), Saka’s been unleashed this season, and popping up more often to finish chances in the penalty area.
Embed from Getty ImagesNow, you can add Havertz and Ødegaard into those right-sided connections. Both are magnificent in tight-spaces and affective at finding pockets to receive.
Ødegaard is a particular master of the art. As players try to block passes into his path rather than marking him diligently, he’s adept at drifting into a pocket where he can receive with just enough time to take the ball on his back-foot.
The 27-year-old is great at receiving on the half-turn, opening up his body, and knowing when that next pass needs to be made. Here he is doing exactly that, setting Kai Havertz through on goal.
Since Havertz is also great with his back-to-goal and good at bouncing passes around, Ødegaard now has someone to play neat and tidy connections with rather than having to ping passes over the top, switch the play or pull off the perfect assist. While he’s capable of doing this, it’s not his game to be Bruno Fernandes. He prefers pulling defenders toward him with his close control and skill, and then finding that right pass for the player left open as a result.
This is one of the reasons why Arteta seems to be prioritizing Kai Havertz over Viktor Gyökeres so far this season, with the Swede’s game more about running the channels and penalty box poaching. Havertz is more of a ‘false nine’ facilitator, who can work in better harmony with Arsenal’s best players.
Embed from Getty ImagesBehind him, the Arsenal captain has also been supported by a rest-defense that includes both Declan Rice and Myles Lewis-Skelly. He has license to roam further forward, and continues to stay as one of the highest players in every phase of defense – where he sits alongside Havertz in a 4-4-2.
The other thing that’s worked in his favour comes down the left-side. Riccardo Calafiori has been magnificent with his movement this season, often positioned inside the left-half-spaces and “inverted”, before darting through on goal to receive the end of whatever Christos Tzolis can conjure. With these combinations in mind, both Ødegaard and Saka have been able to race into the box to finish off moves. In fact, on both of Saka’s tap-in’s this season, Ødegaard was right there and ready to score too.
Embed from Getty ImagesChristos Tzolis has been essential to this puzzle.
Before, Arsenal’s left-wingers were a bit more one dimensional. Trossard and Martinelli prefered to run at the opposition and go direct down the left-wing. Tzolis (as I’ve wrote about a few times already!) loves to be multi-dimensional. He’ll go onto his left-foot one time, and then onto his right-foot the next. You never know which way he’s going to turn.
Embed from Getty ImagesThis kind of variety allows a player like Ødegaard to operate with greater anonymity. As Tzolis takes defenders out of the game and cuts inside, he’ll then play a smooth pass across the grass for Ødegaard to receive and score.
Or he’ll play in Calafiori. Or he’ll go on his own. You never know with Tzolis, just like Bukayo Saka can be difficult to predict down the other wing.
Embed from Getty ImagesAll of this has helped Ødegaard to thrive this season, where he’s started this campaign on 2 goals in 3 matches – already bettering his goal tally from last campaign. In those opening three matches, Arsenal have been in total control – dominating the ball and attacking relentlessly. Ødegaard’s been essential to that puzzle, arguably their best player to start the season.
Embed from Getty ImagesArsenal have all the tools everywhere you look to win the Premier League again. But with their big players like Martin Ødegaard and Bukayo Saka in top form, it’s hard to see how anyone can stop them from completely dominating.
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