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 today's game against Chelsea, Martin assesses the first leg at Stamford Bridge, Martin Zubimendi's adaptation to life in England, and his dream of playing for us at Wembley in a major final. Here is a snippet:
We're one game away from reaching Wembley for the final, so we have a huge motivation to get the job done tonight.
We did really well to get a victory in the first game at Stamford Bridge, and now it’s down to us to make the most of that opportunity here at Emirates Stadium tonight. The first leg was probably more open than we wanted it to be, and we had the feeling that we could have won by a bigger margin with how it was going. We didn’t manage to do that, and we know with their quality they have, the game is always alive. So that’s a warning to us, we know it will be a tough game again here.
I thought Zubi did really well for his goal in the first leg, and he’s been brilliant in his first season in England. He's adapted really quickly since joining, with the physicality and demands of playing in the Premier League. Everyone can see his quality on the ball, and his goal at Stamford Bridge was another example of that. He’s a very intelligent player and I think for those types of players, it's probably easier to adapt because they're so smart in their movements and positioning. So that helps him a lot – you see his smartness on the pitch when you watch him play. He’s a proper, intelligent player.
[Read more
Highlights: Chelsea 2-3 Arsenal](https://www.arsenal.com/news/highlights-chelsea-2-3-arsenal?utm_source=arsenaldotcom&utm_medium=embedded-article&utm_campaign=news)
So yes, we could have won by more maybe in the first leg, but overall it was a good result, you should always be satisfied to get the win at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea are a strong team, just look at their form lately. Even if there are some regrets that we didn’t kill the game, we played well in the first leg and it’s positive to come into tonight’s game with a lead. It’s true we could be in an even better position, but now we’re here at home, in front of our own supporters, so let’s make the most of that.
It’s a great feeling to be here at home, 90 minutes away from reaching a final and the chance of winning the trophy. We have to take the positives and the lessons we learned in the first leg, and be ready for this one. It’s where we want to be. We are used to playing games over two legs, and the way we approach it is to try and win again tonight. That’s the way we go into every game, and especially taking the experience from our last home game in the league – against Manchester United – let’s use that pain and put things right this evening.
We know what we need to do, we know what we want and winning a trophy is the goal for everyone here. Speaking personally too, I would love to get back to Wembley. I played there in the Community Shield a couple of years ago, and you know the team is doing well when you are playing at Wembley. Finals are what you want to play in – the right to fight for trophies. It’s the same for all of us, it would be so special to be back there and see lots of you there with us as well. That’s what we are aiming for tonight.
We will need you all right behind us again – it’s a cup semi-final at Emirates Stadium, so the atmosphere will be incredible. Let’s get it done together!
Read the rest of Martin's notes, as well as a host of other fantastic content, by buying the Arsenal v Chelsea programme either around the stadium oronline.
[Read more
Preview: Chelsea v Arsenal](https://www.arsenal.com/news/preview-chelsea-v-arsenal-3?utm_source=arsenaldotcom&utm_medium=embedded-article&utm_campaign=news)
Copyright 2026 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.