Before every game at Emirates Stadium, Martin Odegaard lifts the lid on the mood in the camp via his captain’s notes published in the matchday programme.
Ahead of this evening's game against Aston Villa, our captain reflects on how our loss at Villa Park can drive us forward, getting back on the scoresheet against Brighton, his 2025 memories and new year aims. Here is a snippet:
This is a massive game for us to finish up the year, and we're all really looking forward to this one. We played Aston Villa a few weeks ago, of course, and it’s unusual to play a team twice so close together in the league. It feels more like a two-legged Champions League or cup tie, so this gives us a good chance to face them again soon after the defeat at Villa Park. We can use that as motivation.
We know the quality they have, and we saw that in the first game. Going forward, they are very dangerous, and when they win the ball back, they look to counter quickly. They are a really well-coached team, organised and good on the ball, so it’s a tough game for sure. We feel like we could have won that away game, and now we’ve got the opportunity to show that tonight.
As a fellow attacking midfielder, Morgan Rogers is a player I like to watch, and he’s been in really good form this season. I’ve always been drawn to No. 10s and that type of player, and I enjoy watching them closely. There is so much quality in this league, and Morgan has been excellent this season, as well as last season. He’s a top player who we’ll have to be careful of tonight.
But as always, we focus on ourselves. We have a lot of quality, and we want to play our own game tonight and impose our style on the match.
Looking back at Saturday’s game, the most important thing against Brighton was getting the win, and I think we did a lot of good things during the match. We controlled the game for most of it and played some really good football until they scored.
I was happy to get on the scoresheet because I’ve been waiting for that one. I’ve been working really hard in training on my finishing, practising it a lot, so it was good to see it go in. I like to operate just outside the box and link up with Bukayo because we know each other so well. He found me with a good pass, I saw a small angle into the bottom corner, and it turned into a good goal overall.
This is our last game of 2025, so on behalf of the whole squad, we wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year. Looking back on the year, on a personal level it’s been very special to watch my son grow up over the past 12 months. On the pitch, there have also been some great performances to remember. For me, the Real Madrid games are probably the first that come to mind.
But we want more. We want to win something, and hopefully 2026 can be the year we do that. It’s very clear that everyone here at Arsenal wants to win trophies, and that’s what we are working towards every single day. Hopefully 2026 will be the year for us, because we are ready for it.
Read the rest of Martin's notes, as well as a host of other fantastic content, by buying the Arsenal v Aston Villa programme either around the stadium oronline, or subscribe to get every editiondelivered to your door.
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