Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard predicts Mikel Arteta will lead the Gunners to qualify for the Champions League this season after enduring a frustrating climax to the 2021/22 term.
The Emirates Stadium outfit had a spot in the Premier League top-four in their hands with three games to go. But defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United allowed their north London rivals to climb into the final Champions League paying position at the death.
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Arsenal could have also sealed a premier UEFA berth but for a run of successive defeats to Crystal Palace, Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton through April. A stretch of games that preceded Arteta overseeing wins against Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham.
Odegaard played a key role in Arsenal fighting Tottenham for fourth-place last season with seven goals and four assists after a £34m summer transfer from Real Madrid. He also took over the captaincy for their final eight games, and now has the position full-time this term.
Martin Odegaard sends Prem warning in Arsenal – Champions League prediction
Martin Odegaard has now sent a warning to the rest of the Premier League in a prediction that Arsenal will qualify for the Champions League this term. The 23-year-old is confident that Mikel Arteta’s men will get the Gunners to where he believes the club should be, too.
“Yeah, of course it’s a big thing for us,” Odegaard said, via quotes by the Evening Standard. “It was last year, as well, and towards the end we had it in our hands, and then we lost it.
“That was a hard one for us, everyone was really disappointed and frustrated with how we ended the season. I think you will see a hungry and ready Arsenal team come back and do it this year. That’s where the club should be, and that’s the goal.”
Defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United ensured Spurs pipped Arsenal to end the Premier League season in fourth by just two points. The north London rivals, alongside Chelsea and Manchester United, should now fight for a Champions League berth this term.
Tottenham and Arsenal got their 2022/23 campaigns off to the ideal start in victories over Southampton and Crystal Palace respectively. Chelsea also started their season with three points after beating Everton, while Manchester United lost 2-1 to Brighton & Hove Albion.
Arsenal certainly looked like the hungrier side during the early stages at Crystal Palace, like Odegaard predicts for Arteta’s men. But the Gunners will want to maintain their promising momentum further into their upcoming games after allowing the Eagles to find a footing.
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