SSC Napoli v Arsenal FC - UEFA Champions League 2026/27 Phase MD1
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Martin Odegaard barely got a run of games alongside Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz last season, with injuries keeping the trio apart for long spells.
This season they鈥檝e all been fit, and Arsenal鈥檚 attack looks a lot better for it. The captain has been especially integral to that, particularly in the Champions League.
Odegaard played the full game away at Napoli and won it with a brilliant strike from outside the box that went in off the post. Then against Lille on Tuesday, he came off the bench with Arsenal 1-0 up and they scored twice more within minutes of his arrival. He started the move for the third, threading a pass through for Declan Rice to set up Saka.
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Martin Odegaard is leading the Champions League in two key areas
According to Squawka, Odegaard has made 13 accurate passes into the penalty area in the Champions League this season, more than any other player in the competition. That鈥檚 from roughly 115 minutes of football.
Next on the list is Bayern Munich鈥檚 Michael Olise with 11, and he鈥檒l miss Arsenal鈥檚 trip to the Allianz Arena next week through suspension. Bruno Guimaraes also makes the top 10 with five.
Odegaard leads the way in another area, too. According to OptaJoe, 31% of the Norwegian’s passes in the Champions League have been line-breaking, the highest percentage of any player in the competition with at least 50 passes. That鈥檚 42 out of 135.
It fits with how Arsenal have been playing. They鈥檝e scored five goals this season from moves of at least 10 passes, and Odegaard has been involved in most of them, including his own winner in Naples. With Olise out and Bayern having conceded three times to Viking FK, he鈥檒l be the player Arsenal look to for the key passes in Munich.