Arsenal booked their place in the semi-final of the EFL Cup after beating Crystal Palace 3-2.
The Gunners have been on a difficult run recently. They drew back-to-back games in the Premier League against Fulham and Everton and came under a lot of criticism.
Against Palace on Wednesday night, it looked like one of those games again as Jean-Philippe Mateta gave the Eagles a lead after just four minutes.
However, Gabriel Jesus scored a brilliant hat-trick in the second half to win Arsenal the game. He has now hailed one of his teammates.
What Gabriel Jesus told Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard before scoring his hat-trick vs Crystal Palace
Arsenal had their usual problems in the first half.
The Gunners dominated possession after going a goal down, but they failed to create anything significant before the break.
That must have concerned Mikel Arteta, who decided to take Ethan Nwaneri off at the break and brought on Martin Odegaard in his place.
The Arsenal captain immediately raised the level. He was absolutely outstanding in the second half and assisted two of Jesus’ three goals.
The Brazilian spoke about his captain after the game, and he showered him with praise. Jesus also revealed what he told Odegaard before he scored his hat-trick.
He told Arsenal.com: “The quality that Martin has is amazing. He’s a type of player that can pass these balls and put you in front of the goal.
“That’s what I was telling him; I said “Martin I know your qualities, so I’ll go in behind. If it’s open, I go, you don’t need to look, I will be there.” He played amazing balls [in behind] and I was able to finish the action.
“B (Saka) as well, but I think everyone today tried their best, it’s not easy when you change a lot, normally we don’t play together a lot in the games, and that’s a little bit tricky. At the end, we did our job and won the game.”
Arsenal's Brazilian striker #09 Gabriel Jesus (front) celebrates with Arsenal's Norwegian midfielder #08 Martin Odegaard after scoring his team thi...
Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images
Martin Odegaard’s stats for Arsenal vs Crystal Palace will blow you away
Odegaard has come under some criticism recently when Arsenal have dropped points.
Some fans and pundits have been demanding more from the Gunners skipper – not just as a creator but in front of goal as well.
Odegaard was substituted at the hour mark against Everton. The 26-year-old had a point to prove and he did just that after coming on at half-time against Palace.
In just 45 minutes, the Norway international picked up two assists, created four chances, completed all of his dribbles and had 42 touches. He also maintained an impressive 91 per cent passing accuracy and completely bossed the game.
If Odegaard plays like he did against Palace every week, Arsenal will return to their best.
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