**Mikel Arteta** asserted the importance of having his attacking players fit and firing this year.
**Martin Odegaard** has not hit his best form over the last two seasons — and the last twelve months were particularly disrupted by a series of shoulder injuries. His time with **Norway** at the **World Cup** seems to have given the player a chance to rediscover some rhythm, and [Arsenal](https://www.vavel.com/en/data/arsenal/) are now benefitting.
A captain back in rhythm
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The club captain capped a strong showing in the **Community Shield** with the third goal of the game against **Manchester City**. Five days later, he was heavily involved in a familiar tandem with **Bukayo Saka** and **Ben White**, helping himself to an early second half goal in a **3-0 win over Coventry City**.
Fans of the **Premier League** champions have craved an elite attacker to take the team up a level, but the manager made clear that having a healthy crop of players this year can make a huge difference.
·**'The stronger those relationships are, the better'**
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_"\[Martin\] is fit and available, I think that's the baseline. If you're fit and available, you have a chance to perform. Last season he had too many incidents where it didn't allow him to have any consistency._
_"For a player like Martin, the relationship that he has around him is extremely important. I'm very pleased with what I've seen in the first few weeks. We know he can maintain and improve that level._
Unpredictability in the final third
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_"The more relationships we have, the more unpredictability we have, and the stronger those relationships are, the better. Because when one part closes, another one will open._
_"We have to be able to identify what the opponent is trying to do and then attack some of the other weak areas that they will leave if they want to protect certain areas."_