Arsenal are in fine form once again and staking a real claim for both the Premier League title and the Champions League.
The Gunners had a bit of a blip while Martin Odegaard was on the sidelines, but since he’s return, they are firing on all cylinders once again.
Arsenal have convincingly won all three of their games after the international break, scoring 13 goals and conceding just three goals.
Now, BBC Sport pundit Pat Nevin has joked that two Gunners players are so good at linking up that they are “clearly cheating by using telepathy”.
Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka celebrate Arsenal's 2nd goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Nottingham Forest FC at Emirate...
Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
READ MORE: Mikel Arteta on whether Manchester United can be Premier League title challengers this season
Arsenal duo Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka ‘clearly cheating by using telepathy’
Nevin was speaking about Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, whose link-up play on the pitch has been something to behold.
By the midway point of the 5-2 win over West Ham, Saka and Odegaard had taken 60 touches between them, just under a third of the Hammers’ total.
All seven goals came in the first half, with Saka scoring a penalty and getting two assists, while Odegaard struck from the spot.
“Every now and again you get a weird day in Premier League land,” Nevin wrote on BBC Sport.
“Arsenal and West Ham channelling the spirit of Ange Postecoglou in the first half at London Stadium was a case in point.
“Seven goals in the first period is extraordinary but wasn’t it fantastic to see those tactically astute but sometimes admittedly slightly boring systems and styles being torn up and ignored – for 45 minutes anyway.
“It was one of those days when you can score a ‘worldie’, as Emerson did from a free-kick, and it gets swallowed up and quickly forgotten amid the rest of the mayhem.
“Clearly Mikel Arteta had enough of that nonsense by half-time and made sure his team were back on a more sober message in the second half. We can’t have the players having that much free-styling fun!
“It did underline that Arsenal – when on form and with Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka not just hand in glove but clearly cheating by using telepathy – are a force to be reckoned with.”
🔴⚪️💫 Bukayo Saka: “Ødegaard is an unbelievable player. The day he returned, there was a big smile on my face”.
“You can see the chemistry we have. I hope he stays fit for the rest of the season”. pic.twitter.com/1Ake32UCuq
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 27, 2024
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What pundits and journalists have said about Saka and Odegaard
“Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard linked up beautifully at times and they looked like the side we’ve seen over the last couple of years,” Jamie Redknapp said on Sky Sports about Saka and Odegaard.
“It just shows everybody what Odegaard does for this team – he knits it together. He is the glue in the team. He is an absolute joy to watch and you see how much better they are with him.
“He frees Saka up and gives him that time in one-on-one situations that you can’t really have unless Odegaard is playing.”
Meanwhile, BBC Sport’s Emma Smith said: “Shearer and Sutton. Rooney and Ronaldo. Vardy and Mahrez. Drogba and Lampard. Silva and Aguero.
“Many Premier League champions feature double acts – essential attacking supply lines which feed the title charge.
“If Arsenal are to challenge for the title this season, it will be down to their own deadly duo – Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard.”
And The Guardian’s Barney Roney said: “There were times during those 49 wild minutes when Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard seemed to be playing pretty much in the same pocket of air, like a pair of hummingbirds, beautifully conjoined.
“Footballers who work together like this are often said to have an understanding or a relationship. This was the real thing. You complete me. No, seriously. Just look at the numbers.”
Arsenal are next in Premier League action against Manchester United, with the game scheduled to kick off at 8:15pm GMT at the Emirates Stadium.
Saka and Odegaard will look to be on song again in pursuit of another three points and a potential first defeat for new Old Trafford manager Ruben Amorim.
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