Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli risks upsetting Martin Odegaard

Mikel Arteta previews Arsenal's clash with Bodo/Glimt

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Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli has risked upsetting Martin Odegaard after insisting that Granit Xhaka is the side’s leader on the pitch. Odegaard was given the captain’s armband at the start of the season and has helped the Gunners storm to the top of the Premier League table.

“Granit always says very positive things – to keep going, to keep the ball and try to attack in behind,” Martinelli told the Athletic. “These kinds of things. He’s the guy who always leads us on the pitch.”

The Brazilian winger’s comments come after he extolled Xhaka for his leadership credentials last week. “Xhaka is an amazing lad,” Martinelli explained. “You see how much he dedicates himself to the team, how much he cares about the match and the players as well – he is definitely one of our leaders.

“Right after our first goal against Tottenham, he calls everybody into a huddle, asking us to stay calm and saying we will score more goals. That’s when you see how important he is to all players. For young players like me and Bukayo [Saka], it’s very important to have a team-mate like him.”

Xhaka was appointed Arsenal captain by Unai Emery in 2019. But he was stripped of it weeks later after he lashed out at fans when he was booed during a match against Crystal Palace, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang taking over the armband.

Aubameyang, himself, had the armband taken away from him ahead of his departure in January, with Alexandre Lacazette captaining the side when available during the second half of the last campaign. Odegaard captained his side on occasions last season – and the 23-year-old Norway international appears to be doing a grand job in his role this time around, with Arsenal winning 10 of their 11 matches.

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Odegaard was asked this week how his role as captain had changed him. And the midfielder replied: “I haven’t thought too much about it to be honest. I try to do the same things, help the team as much as possible. I enjoy the responsibility and just try to do the best for the team always and hopefully that’s good.”

And the ace also spoke about his general game. “I think I’ve developed a lot in the last few years,” he added. “I’ve always been good on the ball but I feel like I’m developing a different side of my game now as well, without the ball. How to improve and affect the game in different ways, so yeah I feel like I’m doing well and of course when the team is doing well it makes things easier for me as well.”

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