Martin Ødegaard News and Analysis

Ranking the 10 best Premier League playmakers in 2024

5Oct

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Ranking the 10 best Premier League playmakers in 2024

From Bruno Fernandes and Martin Odegaard to James Maddison and Cole Palmer, the Premier League is filled with top-class playmakers who provide highlight-reel assists and slick dribbles. Here is a ranking of the best playmakers in the English top flight in 2024. 10. Andreas Pereira, Fulham A lot of people wrote Andreas Pereira off after he put up mediocre numbers for Manchester United for years before going to Brazil, returning, and turning his career around with another historic Premier League side in Fulham. Now, Pereira is playing the best football in his career at the age of 28 and has become one of the best passers in the final third in the entire Premier League. He is a playmaker in his prime and one of the premier set-piece specialists in the English top flight. Pereira had a...

Here’s how long Martin Odegaard will be out for Arsenal due to ankle injury

20Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Here’s how long Martin Odegaard will be out for Arsenal due to ankle injury

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard is out of Saturday's Premier League title-deciding fixture against reigning champions Manchester City after suffering an ankle injury during an international fixture between Norway and Austria. Initially, Odegaard was expected to miss a few weeks, but, now, he is set to miss more time due to the injury after scans revealed actual ligament damage in his left ankle. According to a report from the Daily Mail, Odegaard will now miss eight weeks with the injury, meaning he is now expected to be out until after Nov. 23 when Arsenal face one of the other best defenses in the Premier League, Nottingham Forest. It's a huge blow for Arsenal, as Odegaard is one of the team's two best players alongside right winger Bukayo Saka, and now the Gunners have to keep ...

Arsenal won’t have Martin Odegaard vs. Man City, but they’re getting the next best thing

20Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Arsenal won’t have Martin Odegaard vs. Man City, but they’re getting the next best thing

Arsenal supporters were upset and nervous when captain Martin Odegaard suffered an injury during international duties for Norway against Austria, and, now, it appears his ankle injury is more serious than initially feared with follow-up scans showing ligament damage. Odegaard will miss several matches, if not months, for Arsenal, taking one of the best playmakers and all-around attacking midfielders in world football away from the Gunners. This weekend, Arsenal will face Manchester City in an early-season title-decider for the Premier League crown, and, needless to say, they'll have to get a result on Sunday afternoon at the Etihad without Odegaard available. Arsenal can start Kai Havertz in the attacking midfield with Gabriel Jesus back at striker, but the biggest boost for the G...

Mikel Arteta gives devastating Martin Odegaard injury update

18Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Mikel Arteta gives devastating Martin Odegaard injury update

Arsenal star attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard went down over the September international "break" - by the way, the break stands for the risk of injuries, not any sort of relaxation - during a match between Norway and Austria. The club were initially fearing the worst, and it looks like Arsenal will indeed be without their captain and best midfielder (sorry, Declan Rice) for quite a while, including this weekend's decisive Premier League battle against reigning champions Manchester City. Mikel Arteta informed supporters that recent tests indicated Martin Odegaard suffered ligament damage as a result of the injury, “Recent scans showed that he’s got some damage on one of the ligaments in the ankle especially. It’s something quite significant, so we’re going to lose him for a while....

Ranking the 10 most expensive midfield transfers in Arsenal history

12Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Ranking the 10 most expensive midfield transfers in Arsenal history

Arsenal are one of the biggest clubs in European football, and in recent years, they have shown a renewed willingness to spend and return to the summit of both English football and Europe as a whole. In the past two summers, Arsenal have made two high-profile midfield signings in Declan Rice and Mikel Merino. Rice cost the club over a 100 million euros, as Arsenal needed to spend big in order to make sure they signed the West Ham star over title rivals Manchester City. There's no doubt that Rice was a big splash, but is he the biggest in the history of Arsenal midfield transfers? And where does the 32 million euro deal for Real Sociedad's Mikel Merino rank? Here are the top 10 most expensive midfield additions in Arsenal history. All prices are courtesy of Transfermarkt. 10. Sant...

Every Arsenal game Martin Odegaard is set to miss with ankle injury

11Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Every Arsenal game Martin Odegaard is set to miss with ankle injury

Arsenal star attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard went down with an ankle injury in Norway's 2-1 win over Austria during the UEFA Nations League, becoming the latest top player to fall victim to an injury during a useless set of international games during a period of time laughably dubbed a "break". Odegaard's injury comes before Arsenal is set to face off against arch rivals Tottenham in the North London derby, with big fixtures against Atalanta in the Champions League and then Manchester City in the Premier League afterwards. No match in world football, besides El Clasico, feels as big as Arsenal vs. Manchester City now that Mikel Arteta and mentor Pep Guardiola have been battling neck-and-neck for the Premier League title in back-to-back games. But with a three-week timeline ex...

Arsenal star Martin Odegaard suffers injury before Tottenham clash

9Sep

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Premier League

Arsenal star Martin Odegaard suffers injury before Tottenham clash

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has been one of the best players in the Premier League since joining the Gunners from Real Madrid, spreading his wings as one of world football's best modern playmakers under coach Mikel Arteta. With Odegaard pulling the strings, Arsenal are perennial Premier League title contenders and one step closer towards returning to a Champions League Final, with the 25-year-old coming off a 10-assist season after notching 15 goals in 2022/23. Unfortunately for Arsenal, it looks like they may have to face arch rivals Tottenham in the North London derby this coming Sunday without the services of their superstar midfielder. Odegaard went down with a left ankle injury during the September international "break", getting caught with Austria star playmaker Christop...

Ranking the 10 best attacking midfielders in men’s football right now in 2023

30Jun

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Features

Ranking the 10 best attacking midfielders in men’s football right now in 2023

Although the modern game has seemingly phased out the No. 10, there are still plenty of footballers finding ways to make an impact in the attacking midfield, either playing there in a scheme with two flexible attacking mids or moving up into that area of the pitch from a 4-3-3. And even still, there are a few 10's getting to play in that traditional CAM role regularly, such as Bruno Fernandes, or in certain systems based on opponent, such as Paulo Dybala. So in honor of this wonderful position and the creators who inspire us to try out some killer through passes on our local community pitch, let's rank the best attacking midfielders in world football right now. We'll leave out players who primarily play as an 8 or on the wing and stick to only players who have frequently earned mi...

Final 2022/23 Premier League Team of the Season

29May

By Kevin ParviziNo Comments

Features, Premier League

Final 2022/23 Premier League Team of the Season

Now that the 2022/23 Premier League season has officially come to a conclusion, it's time to take one final look back at the season's top individual performers at every position. Here is the Premier League Team of the Season, utilizing a 3-5-2 formation that is highly attacking because the four players in the attacking midfield and at striker absolutely HAD to make a list like this. GK Bernd Leno, Fulham: Alisson and David Raya also merited consideration here, but Bernd Leno has to be the pick in goal for the 2022/23 Premier League Team of the Season. Leno was second behind Alisson in post-shot expected goals prevented per 90 at +0.26 to Alisson's +0.27. Meanwhile, he was second in save percentage at 77.2 compared to Raya's 77.4. Whichever way you spin it, Leno was the most consis...