Ian Wright has claimed that Martin Odegaard is delivering what Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta expected from Mesut Ozil. The 23-year-old has been in fine form of late and produced another impressive performance during the Gunners’ 2-0 win over Leicester on Sunday.
Odegaard joined Arsenal in a £30million deal from Real Madrid last summer after initially signing on a six month loan deal. Arteta identified Odegaard as Ozil’s replacement after the German became a peripheral figure at the Emirates Stadium under his management, until he left to join Fenerbahce in January of last year.
Ozil struggled to get to grips with Arteta’s vision of high intensity, pressing football and his reported £350,000-a-week wages were also an issue due to his increasing peripheral status at the club. However, former Arsenal star Wright believes that Odegaard is exhibiting the kind of attributes that Arteta desired from Ozil.
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"There’s a calmness around the club," Wright said whilst discussing Arsenal’s victory over Leicester on Match of the Day 2. "And I think Odegaard in the way that he plays, he’s one of the main reasons for that.
"For me the ‘playmaker’ is back. You know, the No.10 and the way that he’s playing. The way that he gets in those positions that he gets into but then it’s the calmness. Like I said he doesn’t rush.
"This is what you want, this is what you want from a midfielder not just somebody that’s going to go sideways…it’s 'bam'. All of a sudden [Alexandre] Lacazette gets half a second and he has a shot. That’s what he can start doing now because he’s getting a pass like that.
"This is what we wanted. This is what we wanted from Ozil. This is the type of play. This is nice play. It’s easy, simple movement.
"When you've got young players watching players like this [Odegaard] who has that type of ability, don't get yourself in that physicality [physical battle] he gets himself on the periphery of everything and just keeps everything very simple. He has loads of space around him. That’s the confidence flowing through him.
"The thing with him is he’s incisive but he’s not too Hollywood. Look at his numbers, that’s what you want from your creative midfield players and that’s what we’re getting from him. So happy."
