Mikel Arteta unearthed a new role for Martin Odegaard in Saturday afternoon’s 2-0 victory against Brentford thanks to Emile Smith Rowe, and it could be a sign of things to come.
Smith Rowe was brought into the side due to Gabriel Martinelli’s suspension after his red card against Wolves in the previous Premier League fixture.
Despite starting on the left-hand side, Smith Rowe drifted in the central attacking midfield position throughout the game, which is usually occupied by Odegaard.
However, this gave the Norweigan the freedom on the pitch and he was constantly seen in the right half-space, which allowed him to interlink with Bukayo Saka.
Odegaard took control of the match against Brentford on Saturday, and that was because he was given the freedom to go closer to the right-hand side to provide attacking support for Saka, who was able to score.
In recent fixtures, Saka has run himself into the ground and seems to be experiencing a burnout which was evident after the final whistle was blown in Arsenal’s last home draw against Burnley.
This was due to the lack of consistent overlapping runs, it meant that Saka often had to carry the attacking load on the right-hand side.
However, in the match against Brentford, Saka was a livewire and his linkup play with Odegaard was certainly paying off, as that was where the majority of the chances were created.
Odegaard has featured in this position before for Real Sociedad and during his time in Spain, he would constantly find himself creating chances in the right-half space or along the right touchline, where he often excelled.
Another player who has previously benefited from Odegaard operating in the right-half space is Arsenal transfer target Alexander Isak, as they created an excellent connection when the playmaker was on loan at Sociedad.
The match against Brentford provided an insight into the future position of Odegaard, especially if Isak is to join the club in the summer. It could potentially create Mikel Arteta's dream Arsenal frontline, consisting of Saka, Smith Rowe and Isak, who have a combined Transfermarkt value of £128.7 million.
Smith Rowe’s versatility is also crucial as his ability to drift into the middle of the pitch relaxes the burden on Odegaard to create from a central position, and the Englishman is benefitting himself, which was proved with his excellent goal in the second half.
Arsenal's first home Premier League win in 2022 proved to be crucial, and Odegaard's new position had a major part to play.
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